Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (Rewrite)
by JustAnotherSWFan
Summary: A rewrite of The Last Jedi that keeps the main structure and ideas of the original movie but also makes adjustments in regards to fan complaints. Essentially, if one watched the trailers, this would still fit into that. More details on the changes will be put in an initial description.
1. Part 1

The deep blackness of space stood in contrast with the blue and green planet below. In formation above the planet were four capital ships, with a line of small transport pods in flight that descended to the planet below. The largest ship, floating at the center of the formation, was a massive gray cruiser. Surrounding it were smaller support ships, which included a cargo vessel, a medical frigate and a heavily-armed corvette.

Down on the planet below, the Resistance was frantically trying to evacuate their base. Transports continued to lift off into the air. Crewmen ran back and forth, loading boxes of equipment. Lieutenant Connix and an evacuation officer walked side by side, surveying the progress.

"We're not clear yet. There are still pallets of cannon shells in C bunker!" the officer shouted over the roaring engines of the transports.

"Forget the munitions, there's no time," Connix snapped, "Just get everyone on the transports."

A thunderous boom occurred overhead. Connix's head snapped upwards, observing the sky, the light blue now marred by the presence of a gray arrowhead-shaped ship.

"Oh, no," Connix muttered, fear visible on her face. More First Order destroyers dropped out of hyperspace, getting into attack formation.

On the bridge of the lead destroyer stood two figures clad in black First Order uniforms. One was an older man donning an officer's cap, the other was young with a shock of prominent red hair.

"We've caught them in the middle of their evacuation," the elder officer, Captain Peavy, reported.

The younger man, General Hux, had a smug grin on his face. "Excellent. I have my orders from

Supreme Leader Snoke himself. This is where we end the Resistance once and for all. Tell Captain Canady to prime his dreadnought. Incinerate their base, destroy their transports and obliterate their fleet."

Another First Order ship emerged from hyperspace, this one much larger than the rest. It was a dreadnought, a massive, dark gray flat triangular craft, equipped with two powerful auto-cannons on its underside.

On the bridge of the lead destroyer, Hux continued to observe the transports fleeing from the Resistance base to the fleet orbiting above.

"General, Resistance ship approaching," a female deck officer reported. "Guns and shields in attack mode."

"A single light fighter?" Hux's face scrunched up into a look of confusion.

Facing down the looming First Order fleet was a single X-wing, distinct because of its black paintjob. At the controls was Commander Poe Dameron, ace pilot of the Resistance. He continued to flip switches, folding his fighter's wings together.

In the socket behind the cockpit, Poe's droid BB-8 beeped nervously.

"Happy beeps here, buddy, come on. We've pulled crazier stunts than this."

General Leia's voice interrupted over his comms. "Just for the record, Commander Dameron, I'm with the droid on this one."

"Thank you for your support, General." Poe took a deep breath to calm himself. "Happy beeps." He then flicked a switch to transmit a message to the First Order leadership.

"Attention. This is Commander Poe Dameron of the Republic fleet, I have an urgent communique for General Hux."

Hux glared at the fighter, still just a dot in the distance. "Patch him through." The General cleared his throat. "This is General Hux of the First Order. The Republic is no more. Your fleet are Rebel scumand war criminals. Tell your precious princess there will be no terms, there will be no surrender."

Hux paced along the bridge, awaiting a response. Finally, a static-filled voice ended the silence.

"I'm holding for General Hux."

The General's red eyebrows knitted together in anger. "This is Hux. You and your friends are faced with overwhelming firepower. We will wipe your filth from the galaxy."

"Okay. I'll hold," Poe answered. He looked down at his console. The modified booster engine on his X-wing was almost charged to full capacity. He just had to delay Hux a little longer.

"Can you hear me?" Hux seethed.

"Look, I can't hold forever. If you reach him, tell him Leia has an urgent message for him..."

"I believe he's tooling with you, sir," Captain Peavy whispered to Hux.

"...about his mother," Poe said, finishing his insult.

Hux leaned over to address a gunnery officer. "Open fire!"

In his cockpit, Poe watched the monitor as his booster became fully charged. "BB-8, punch it!"

BB-8 chirped excitedly, triggering the booster engine. Purple flame rushed from the exhaust burner, launching Poe's X-wing forward with tremendous speed. Poe felt the force of acceleration push him back deep into his seat.

"He's going for the dreadnought," Peavy said, a hint of shock in his voice.

"Ha! He's insane," Hux replied smugly.

The black X-wing continued to approach the dreadnought at a rapid pace, until it came up on its bow. Poe hit the brakes, lurching forward from the sudden change in speed. "Woo-hoo! That's got a kick." He opened his s-foil wings and began his attack. "All right, taking out the cannons now."

The four-barreled cannons dotting the hull surface of the dreadnought all began to fire at the X-wing, but the small craft was too nimble for the guns to hit. Poe maneuvered his X-wing into position, blasting the first cannon into molten scrap. He continued to weave in and out of the turrets, taking them out methodically as he flew by.

Poe thumbed the trigger on his joystick and watched another turret explode. He flew his X-wing right through the flaming wreckage, then targeted another cannon.

"Tallie, start your approach," he said.

"Copy that. We'll stay out of range until the last cannon is gone," Tallie said in response.

Captain Cannady, an older, stocky man who commanded the dreadnought, watched from the ship's thin bridge as the cannons across the broad surface exploded in rapid succession.

A hologram of General Hux appeared near the bridge window. "Captain Canady, why aren't you blasting that puny ship?"

"That puny ship is too small and at too close range. We need to scramble our fighters!" Cannady barked back at Hux before turning and muttering, "five bloody minutes ago."

Another officer approached Cannady as he began to storm across the bridge. "He'll never penetrate our armor," she assured him.

"He's not trying to penetrate our armor," Cannady grumbled. "He's clearing out our surface cannons."

Poe swung his X-wing out of a barrel roll, taking down another surface gun. "One cannon left," he reported, before hearing the distinctive scream of a TIE fighter engine behind him. "And here comes the parade."

BB-8 chirped nervously and swiveled his head, watching as three TIE fighters barreled in on Poe's tail. He let loose a series of panicking beeps, wobbling frantically in his socket.

"Yeah! Yeah, I see him!" Poe shouted back, jerking his joystick back and forth. His fighter swung from left to right, green blaster bolts whizzing by his wings. He stared intently out his cockpit, focused on the last cannon ahead of him.

The TIE pilot closest to Poe tracked the Resistance fighter's moves, trying to trace his blaster fire back on target. After a few slight course corrections, one of his bolts grazed the upper right engine of the black X-wing.

"No, no, no. Damn it!" Poe thumbed the trigger of his joystick, but none of his guns fired. "BB-8, my weapons systems are down. We gotta take out that last cannon or our bombers can't make their run. Work your magic, buddy."

BB-8 disappeared into his socket to inspect the fighter's internals. He moved his head around, spotting a sparking mess of circuits. He opened a flap on his round body and extended a thin metal arm, then used it to plug the circuit. The sparks disappeared, but seconds later, a new circuit burst. The droid let out a frustrated beep.

Inside the dreadnought, Cannady was pacing impatiently. He turned to the gunnery officer. "Are the auto-cannons primed?"

"Primed and ready, sir."

"What are we waiting for? Fire on the base!"

The two massive cannons on the underside of the dreadnought rained fire onto the planet below. Heavily-charged orange slugs impacted the Resistance base, turning it into a ball of flame. One last transport was lifting off as the base erupted in a bright red flash.

Inside the cockpit was Lt. Connix, who stood between the two pilots. "Punch it!" she ordered. The pilot threw a lever forward, launching the bulbous transport away from the destroyed base.

"The last transport is in the air," Connix reported. "The evacuation is complete."

Inside the bridge of the main cruiser, Leia smiled with pride. Her mentee had proven once again how courageous and capable he was. "You did it, Poe. Now get your squad back here so we can get out of this place," she said.

Poe continued to maneuver sharply, the three enemy fighters still pursuing him tightly. "No, General…We can do this. We have the chance to take out a dreadnought. These things are fleet killers. We can't let it get away."

The black X-wing folded up its wings and turned sideways, passing through a row of sharp antennae. One of the TIE fighters tried to pull up, but was too late. The fighter's wings were cut clean off, while the cockpit pod continued forward, smashing to a small viewport.

Leia spoke more sternly this time. "Disengage now, Commander. That is an or—"

Poe flicked off his cockpits and refocused on the flight in front of him. Leia wasn't here in the cockpit with him, and he was in charge of the Resistance's flight groups. He knew he was making the right call.

Leia sighed at Poe's rashness. She looked up and saw C-3PO staring at her. "Wipe that nervous expression off your face, Threepio."

"Oh. Well, I will certainly try, General," the protocol droid responded.

"Let's go, BB-8. It's now or never!" Poe grunted. The droid retracted its metal hand from the sparking circuit, then turned his body sideways. His head ejected up from his body, covering the entirety of the sparking circuit board. Poe's targeting system lit up.

"Yes!" the pilot cheered, firing on the last cannon. As it erupted into flame, Poe flew right through it, then hit the breaks and sharply turned his fighter around. The last two TIE pilots watched in disbelief as the X-wing whipped around onto their tails, in perfect position for a kill shot.

Both TIE fighters didn't have time to react as they were disintegrated by a barrage of X-wing cannon fire. BB-8 rolled into upright position, shaking his head as electric current jumped across his body.

"All clear! Bring the bombs," Poe exclaimed.

A First Order officer observed the situation through a macro-periscope. "Captain, Resistance bombers approaching," he warned.

"Of course they are," Cannady muttered bitterly.

Facing off against the dreadnought was a formation of a dozen heavy bombers. Each had a cigar-shaped body, and a long fin on its underside. Stubby wings protruded from each side of the cockpit. Ball-shaped gun turrets provided protection from hostile fighters. Flying alongside the bombers were more X-wings, these with white paintjobs, and small, wedge-shaped A-wing interceptors.

"Bombers, keep that tight formation," Tallie said. She moved her A-wing into a position that overlooked the Resistance formation. "Fighters, protect the bombers. It's not every day we get a shot at a dreadnought, so let's make this count."

"Copy that, Blue Leader," the lead bomber pilot said.

"You get us there, we'll give it to them," the bombardier added.

"Copy. We're on it," an X-wing pilot replied.

A grizzled bomber pilot stared out his cockpit. "Fighters incoming."

A stream of First Order TIE fighters poured from the hangars of the dreadnought. They swarmed in on the formation, going to attack speed.

Tallie whipped her controls forward, a determined look on her face. "Gunners, look alive."

"They're coming in! Form up!" an A-wing pilot shouted over the radio.

The TIE fighters barreled in, cannons blazing. The two fighter formations collided, ships exploding on both sides. A few First Order fighters that approached the bombers were picked off by their turret gunners. Another TIE tried to target a bomber's exposed flank, but was shot from behind by an X-wing, which zoomed past the remains of the destroyed fighter.

"They're everywhere!" an X-wing pilot yelled before his cockpit exploded in a flash of sparks and flames.

"Vector in at attack speed," Tallie commanded. She swerved to avoid an X-wing chasing a TIE fighter, then targeted another TIE. She smashed the fire controls, tearing the fighter to shreds.

Three TIE fighters managed to break through the Resistance fighter defenses, allowing them to target a bomber. They unloaded with their cannons, blaster bolts thudding into the nose of the bomber.

"Mayday! Mayday! We're going down!" the pilot shouted as his bomber dipped downwards, consumed in flame.

Captain Cannady arrogantly surveyed the battle raging before his eyes. "Recharge the auto-cannons. Target their cruiser," he ordered. The underbelly-mounted autocannons begin to point upwards, inching closer to targeting the Resistance fleet.

BB-8 noticed this, and chirped frantically.

"Yeah, I see it," Poe acknowledged. "Tallie, they've targeted the fleet and begun the priming sequence."

"Copy that. We're almost there." Tallie took down another TIE fighter as it flashed by. "Bombardiers, begin your drop sequence."

"I've got a visual on the target," the lead bombardier responded. He picked up a boxy detonator switch and a pressed a red bottom. All the bombs lit up, armed and ready to drop.

"Bombs are armed. We're approaching the sweet spot."

A TIE fighter came up from underneath a bomber, but was hit by the lower fin turret gunner. It spiraled out of control, slamming into the thick fin, which held all of the bombs. The fighter exploding, creating even more destruction due to the armed bombs.

Shrapnel erupted from the bomber, eviscerating bombers to the left and right of it. With the Resistance formation in chaos, some TIE fighters broke through. Green blaster bolts drilled into the remaining bombers.

Only one of the heavy bombers emerged from the barrage intact. It had slight damage on the right side of its fuselage, but nothing critical. It steadied on.

Inside its ball turret, the gunner, Paige Tico, watched the flaming hulks of the rest of the bomber squadron pass by. She was breathing heavily, fear and horror etched across her face.

In the dreadnought, the crew was making the final preparations to fire on the Resistance fleet.

"Auto-cannons aimed," reported an officer.

"Forty seconds to full charge," a lieutenant said. She turned to face Cannady, who was glaring at the remains of the Resistance attack formation.

"Destroy that last bomber!" he barked, jabbing his finger at the bomber outside the bridge window. The Resistance bomber was tiny in comparison to the massive dreadnought, a gray speck among a storm of red and green blaster fire.

Poe was pre-occupied with the battle raging in front of him when he noticed the bomber's bay doors were still closed.

"Paige, come in," he radioed, "we're over the target. Why aren't your bay doors open?"

"I-I…I don't know," Paige stammered.

"You're the only bomber left. It's all down to you!"

Paige rolled her turret back up into the body of the bomber, a determined expression on her sweaty face. She exited her ball turret and climbed a ladder that led to the upper deck.

"Nix!" she shouted, only to see the bombardier's body lying motionless next to a flaming wound in the fuselage.

Poe's voice rang out over the bomber's speaker system. "Paige! Drop the payload now!"

Paige spotted the activator lying several feet from her. She reached over to it, fumbling it with her fingers.

In the bomber's cockpit, the pilot's eyes grew wide in fear as a TIE fighter barreled in straight for him. "Look out!"

The co-pilot looked up to see thin blaster bolts tear into the cockpit. The impact of the blast knocked Paige back through the ladder-hole. As she fell back into the bomb bay, her world became black.

She awoke quickly, her ears ringing. She realized she was lying face-up on a small service bridge. Above her, dangling at the top of the ladder, was the activator switch.

Paige kicked the ladder near the base, and the activator wobbled. She kept kicking it, the activator inching slightly closer to the edge.

Captain Cannady watched as the autocannons reached their full charge. "Fire!"

A black-helmeted First Order gunner began to pull fire control levels and activate switches. The two autocannons began to glow as they heated up.

Paige summoned up all the remaining strength she had and delivered one last kick to the ladder. The detonator teetered over the edge then fell. It ricocheted off the bomb bay racks, falling past Paige's eyes.

Without hesitation, she flipped her body over and grabbed the activator. With it firmly in her hand, she pressed the bright red button.

Hundreds of bombs fell from the racks, their momentum carrying them down onto a prominent indentation in the dreadnought's surface.

Paige lay on the gangway, watching as flames ascended upon her. She closed her eyes and firmly gripped the crescent-shaped golden medallion hanging around her collar.

Tallie witnessed the bombs pouring out from the lone bomber. "Bombs away!" she radioed in, followed by cheers from other pilots.

Alarms blared about the dreadnought bridge as the ship began to rupture. While other officers fled, Cannady stood at the front of the bridge, chin up and chest puffed out. He didn't budge as the flames enveloped him.

Aboard the Resistance cruiser, the bridge crew was celebrating as the holographic display of the dreadnought fractured in thousands of pieces.

"Direct hit! Dreadnought down!"

The cheers continued, but Leia's smile vanished from her face as she looked down at the display in front of her. They had lost a sizeable amount of fighters, but worst of all, their entire bomber squadron had been wiped out.

The Resistance fighters flew back to the main cruiser, where they braked hard upon entered the hangar. As soon as all fighters were aboard, the fleet jumped to lightspeed.

Aboard one the First Order destroyers, Hux watched in horror as the dreadnought crumbled while the Resistance fled. He was then interrupted by a voice from behind him.

"General, Supreme Leader Snoke is making contact from his ship."

"Excellent. I'll take it in my chambers," Hux muttered. He began to exit the bridge when a massive hologram of Snoke's deformed, skeletal-looking face was projected in front of him.

"General Hux," Snoke growled in an ominous voice.

Hux tried to calm himself. "Supreme Leader—" "My disappointment in your performance cannot be overstated," Snoke said.

"They can't get away, Supreme Leader. We have them tied on the end of a string."

The Resistance cruiser glided through the blue-white funnel of hyperspace. In the ship's medical bay lay Finn, encased in a pod and still recovering from his injuries. He was wearing a bubbly bacta suit over his entire except for his head.

Finn awoke with a startled expression on his face. "Rey!" he yelled, slamming his head against the glass of the pod. He reached up and removed the pod cover, before falling off the bed. His suit immediately began to leak, healing liquid spraying everywhere.

Poe and the rest of the pilots were in the main hangar, unloading from their fighters.

"Well done, pal," Poe said to BB-8. The droid beeped happily in response, but followed up with a series of strange noises.

"'Finn naked leaking bag'?" Poe questioned, in disbelief of what he heard. "What? Did you fry a chip?"

BB-8 chirped and swiveled his head towards the hangar entrance. There stood fin, trudging down the hallway as his suit leaked all over the white floors of the cruiser.

"Finn! Finn, buddy," Poe greeted as he ran over to meet his friend "It's so good to see you. We need to get you dressed. Come on. You must have a thousand questions."

Finn stared dully into the distance, only one thought on his mind: "Where's Rey?"

Rey stood at the top of an island cliff on the ancient planet of Ahch-To, staring at the man across from her: legendary Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. The seasoned Jedi continued to stare wordlessly, not reacting to Rey holding out the lightsaber. Unsure of what to do, she stepped forward, placing the saber in his hands.

Luke's hands quivered as they traveled over its metal body. He looked deeply at the object, a fury of emotions flashing before his eyes. Visions of love, hate, defeat, victory, suffering and redemption. He moved to the Jedi weapon to his mechanical right hand, which was still shaking. He loosened his grip on the lightsaber and let if fall to the ground below him.

Then, staring ahead and not looking back, Luke Skywalker strode away, ignoring Rey's presence.

The girl was shocked. "Master Skywalker?" she whispered in confusion. This was not the reaction she had anticipated from one of the Galaxy's greatest heroes.

She followed him down to a small village comprised of seven stone bell-shaped huts. One of them had a metal sheet acting as a door, which Rey assumed was a sign that it was Luke's dwelling.

Rey approached the hut, knocking on the door with her staff. "Master Skywalker? I'm from the Resistance. Your sister Leia sent me. We need your help."

She waited, but there was no answer. "Hello?"

Once again, no response came. Rey gestured for Chewbacca to come over to her.

Inside the hut, Luke was folding a set of Jedi robes. He heard a metal screeching sound coming from the door, much to his annoyance.

"Go away," he grumbled, before going back to his folding.

However, this time the door was blown straight off its hinges, followed by a low growl. Chewie stepped into the hut, Rey following behind him.

Luke looked up from his robes. "Chewie, what are you doing here?"

"He said you're coming back with us," Rey said.

"How did you find me?"

"Long story. We'll tell you on the Falcon."

"Falcon?"

Chewie let out a soft, sad moan.

Luke paused, a look of realization and horror on his face. In a shaky voice he asked, "Where's Han?"

Kylo Ren stood inside an elevator lift, dressed in his black robes and cape, with his mask on. The lift's cage-like doors opened up, revealing the personal throne room of the Supreme Leader of the First Order.

Snoke sat in his sleek throne, seated within a chamber clad with blood red walls and shiny black walkways. Red-clad guards in segmented armor stood around the room, wielding a unique set of melee weapon: the Praetorian Guards, tasked with defending the Supreme Leader's life at all costs.

In front of the tall throne stood Hux, arms at his sides, facing his ultimate master.

"Tied on a string indeed, General Hux," Snoke sneered. "Well done. The Resistance will soon be in our grasp."

"Thank you, Supreme Leader." Hux bowed and turned sharply on his heels to exit the throne room. He made sure to smirk at Kylo Ren on his way out.

Snoke chuckled ominously. "You wonder why I keep a rabid cur in such a place of power? A cur's weakness properly manipulated, can be a sharp tool."

The Supreme Leader then looked down at his apprentice, who was kneeling before him. "How's your wound?"

"It's nothing," Kylo whispered, bowing his head in shame.

"The mighty Kylo Ren," Snoke said mockingly, "When I found you, I saw what all masters live to see. Raw, untamed power. And beyond that, something truly special: the potential of your bloodline. A new Vader."

Snoke's mocking expression transformed into one of disgust. "Now I fear I was mistaken."

"I've given everything I have to you," Kylo pleaded. "To the dark side."

"Take that ridiculous thing off," Snoke growled, referring to Kylo's mask.

The helmet hinged as it was unlatched, and Kylo pulled it off his head. Underneath was a dark-haired young man with a look of rejection in his eyes and a scar across his face.

Snoke cracked a wicked smile, enjoying his apprentice's emotional pain. "Yes, there it is. You have too much of your father's heart in you, young Solo."

"I killed Han Solo," Kylo snapped. "When the moment came, I didn't hesitate."

"And look at you, the deed split your spirit to the bone."

"I—" Kylo began to speak but was cut off.

"You were unbalanced, bested by a girl who had never held a lightsaber! You failed!" Snoke bellowed.

Upon hearing the words, Kylo threw his cape aside and abruptly jumped to his feet. Snoke stood in response, striking Kylo with blue lightning. The blast hit Kylo's chest, sending him skidding across the glossy black floor.

Three of the red Praetorian Guards snapped out of their statue-like poses and into motion, waving their weapons menacingly as they approach Kylo Ren.

"Prove your worth!" Snoke's voice echoed throughout the chamber as the Guards continued to approach Kylo, spreading out to surround their target from all sides.

Kylo ignited his lightsaber and began to size up his opponents. One Praetorian Guard had a long spear, another was armed with a segmented sword, and the final one carried a staff with a dagger-like blade embedded on each end.

The Praetorian with the double-bladed staff attacked first, twirling his weapon in a downward cutting motion. Kylo blocked the staff with his crimson blade, then pushed back against the Guard, who stumbled. Kylo delivered a kick to the red Guard's abdomen, knocking it over.

Before Kylo could attack further, a second Praetorian charged him from behind. He turned around and got in a defensive stance. His saber clashed with the Praetorian's sword.

The third Guard then rushed Kylo from his exposed side, thrusting his spear. Kylo side-stepped, bringing his saber around to block the attack.

The fallen Praetorian rose back to its feet and rejoined the fight. Kylo had to parry his strike then step back, making sure all the Praetorian Guards were on one side of him, not surrounding him from different angles.

Kylo continued to block strikes from all three Praetorians with his lightsaber. He alternated in going on the offensive, trying to keep all three occupied with his attacks.

He ducked a spear swinging over his head and thrust his lightsaber at the nearest Guard's legs. The blade glanced off the Guard's armored kneepad.

The butt of the spear then collided with Kylo helmet, forcing him back. He was on the retreat, stepping backwards as all three Praetorians tried to break through his defensive parries.

The Praetorian Guard with the double-bladed staff unleashed an intense flurry of strikes, which Kylo frantically countered. The Guard with the spear advanced from the side, hitting Kylo's ribcage with the pole of the weapon.

Kylo grimaced in pain, feebly holding up his lightsaber to block the continued blows of the other two Guards. One of the Praetorians brought his sword down hard against the crossguard of Kylo's lightsaber, knocking the blade from his hand.

Another swept his legs out from under him with its spear. Kylo's back pounded against the floor as he lay sprawled out, defenseless. All three Praetorian Guards held their weapons above his chest.

Snoke had a look of disappointment etched on his gray, deformed face. "Pathetic." He waved his hands, and the Guards retreated back to the corners of the throne room. Kylo stumbled back up to his feet.

"I've had many apprentices over thousands of years. None of them have had your raw potential, yet none have been so weak and broken," Snoke seethed.

The Supreme Leader continued to speak, Kylo bowing his head in shame. "I've strived my whole life to bring about a New Order to the Galaxy. I've witnessed unending conflict between the Jedi and Sith. Each time they try to tip the balance of the Force, only to have it swing back the other way. The Sith were foolish. They pitted master and apprentice against each other. Their strength in the Dark Side could've allow them to prevail, but their personal ambitions always blinded them from fulfilling their main vision. My own apprentice once tried to murder me. I clung to life, regenerating myself slowly and painfully.

"I watched as the Jedi and Republic failed, giving way to an Empire. I've seen the Sith fail, as master and apprentice were once again pitted against each other. With them, the Empire fell. I gathered the remains of their forces and built a new army, a New Order. I learned from the flaws of the Sith and Jedi, flaws I experienced firsthand. I shed the identity of a Sith and created a new breed of master and apprentice, guided only by their determination to achieve their purpose, never distracted by personal interest.

"I've instilled this lesson in you many times, yet you never seem to understand. You've proven weak, emotional, and self-absorbed. Your potential is held back by your personal interests."

"Supreme Leader, I've given all I can," Kylo replied.

Snoke ignored him. "Skywalker lives. The seed of the Jedi Order lives. And as long as it does, hope lives in the galaxy. I thought you would be the one to snuff it out."

Snoke leaned forward in his throne and spoke in a taunting voice. "Alas, you're no Vader. You're just a child in a mask."

An unmasked Kylo stood in a lift, having been dismissed from the Supreme Leader's chamber. He exhaled deeply, staring down at the black mask he held in his hands. Snoke's final words repeated themselves in his mind.

With glassy eyes he continued to look at the mask, running his fingers over the silver lining surrounding the eye-slit.

His feelings of dejection began to disappear, replaced by heated anger. Gripping the mask in hand, Kylo thrust his arm forward, smashing it into the walls of the lift. His anger continued to rise, and he repeatedly slammed his helmet into the lift wall, creating a shower of sparks.

As the lift door opened, two First Order officers watched as Kylo Ren stormed out, seething with anger.

"Prepare my ship," he growled. The two officers quickly nodded in agreement, eyeing the destroyed mask lying on the floor of the lift.

Rey and Chewbacca stood before Luke's ancient hut, facing the Jedi master.

"There's no light left in Kylo Ren," Rey said. "He's only getting stronger. The First Order will control all the major systems within weeks. We need your help. We need the Jedi Order back."

She paused, looking up at the aged Jedi Master standing before her. "We need Luke Skywalker."

"You don't need Luke Skywalker," he retorted.

"Did you hear a word I just said?"

"You think what?" Luke questioned sharply, "I'm gonna walk out with a lightsaber and face down the entirety of the First Order? What did you think was going to happen here? You think that I came to the most unfindable place in the galaxy for no reason at all? Go away."

"I'm not leaving without you!" Rey said desperately.

Luke ignored her, shutting himself away in his hut. He sat down on a wooden bench, holding his face in his hands. Several tears slipped from his eyes as the memories of Han flooded his mind.

Rey stared at the metal door of Luke's hut, the wind blowing loose strands of her hair. Over the sound of the wind she could hear what sounded like faint whispers. She turned her head, but saw no one.

The voices continued. Intrigued, she began to hike towards the center of the island, hoping to discover the sources of the whispers.

As she continued her journey, the voices grew later. She was drawn towards a large, gnarled tree, with broken branches forking out from the base and jutting up towards the sky. The top of the tree was broken, allowing sunlight to enter. An entrance had been carved in the hollow trunk.

The whispers called to Rey, inviting her in. She slowly stepped into the tree, feeling the tension in the air around her. The place emanated a spiritual energy. Its ancient nature was apparent in its shaped wooden walls.

Her eyes were locked onto a stack of books, sitting on a carved shelf at the end of the hollow trunk, illuminated by a beam of sunlight filtering in from above.

The whispers grew more distinct as she approached the ancient manuscripts, their covers detailed with ancient symbols. She reached her hand towards the texts, driven by unknown, instinctual force. As her fingers were about to make contact with the nearest book, she heard the sound of footsteps behind her.

Rey turned around to see the figure of Luke silhouetted in the tree entrance.

"Who are you?" Luke questioned, genuine curiosity in his voice.

Rey hesitated before speaking. "I know this place."

"Built a thousand generations ago to keep these," Luke said, holding an ancient manuscript in his gloved hands. "The original Jedi texts. Just like me, they're the last of the Jedi religion."

He turned to Rey. "You've seen this place… You've seen this island."

"Only in dreams," Rey whispered.

"Who are you?" Luke asked, more emphasis on the question this time.

"The Resistance sent me."

"They sent you? What's special about you?"

Rey didn't answer, unsure of what to say.

Luke noticed this and asked, "Where are you from?"

"Nowhere," she replied quickly, examining the inside of tree instead of facing Luke.

"No one's from nowhere," the Jedi Master said.

Rey turned to look directly at Luke. "Jakku."

All right, that is pretty much nowhere," Luke agreed. "Why are you here, Rey, from nowhere?"

"The Resistance sent me. We need your help. The First Order's become unstoppable."

"Why are _you_ here?"

Rey paused, unsure of how to articulate her thoughts. Finally, she spoke up. "Something… inside me… has always been there. But now it's awake. And I'm afraid. I don't know what it is or what to do with it. And I need help."

"You need a teacher," Luke said, then lowered his voice. "I can't teach you."

"Why not? You just sit on this island. You're not busy."

"I will never train another generation of Jedi," Luke said harshly.

Rey couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her face was filled with pure shock. "What? Why?"

Luke grabbed hold of the gnarled wood near the tree entrance. "I came to this island to die." He gazed out at the vast sea. "It's time for the Jedi to end."

"Why?" Rey questioned, flustered by Luke's words. "Leia sent me here with hope. If she was wrong, she deserves to know why. We all do."


	2. Part 2

Leia slapped Poe across the face. "You're demoted."

She and the ace pilot were aboard the bridge of the Resistance cruiser, traveling through hyperspace.

"What? Wait! We took down a dreadnought!" Poe rebutted.

"At what cost?"

"You start an attack, you follow it through."

"Poe, get your head out of your cockpit," Leia said, frustrated with her pupil. "There are things that you cannot solve by jumping in an X-wing and blowing something up! I need you to learn that."

"There were heroes on that mission," Poe snapped.

"Dead heroes. No leaders."

The conversation was interrupted as Finn walked into the bridge. He was now clothed in navy pants, a tan shirt, and Poe's old flight jacket, newly repaired with thick staples.

Finn approached Leia. "We're really nowhere. How's Rey gonna find us now?"

Leia rolled up the sleeve of her silvery gray coat, revealing a circular device with a blinking light at the center.

Finn's eyes lit up in understanding. "A cloaked binary beacon."

Leia smiled. "To light her way home."

"All right, so until she gets back, what's the plan?"

"We need to find a new base," Leia said. "One with enough power to get a distress signal to our allies scattered in the Outer Rim. Right now, we're on our way to rendezvous with some of the remains of the Republic fleet. Once we gather our forces, we'll bunker down at that new base and wait for help to arrive.

"From there we can start our campaign against the First Order. Unfortunately, we'll have to take back most of the major star systems by then."

Connix approached Leia. "General, we've reached the rendezvous point."

"Excellent," Leia replied. "Bring us out of lightspeed."

The four Resistance ships dropped out of hyperspace. In front of them was a mass of twenty-six ships. The four biggest were New Republic Starhawks, large vessels with hatchet-shaped front ends. A few bulbous Mon Cal cruisers floated around, forming up with the Starhawks.

There were several corvettes of the same model as the one in the Resistance fleet. On the pylons that extended from their bridges hung squadrons of A-wings or bombers.

Besides several other types of support ships, groups of New Republic X-wings flew patrol patterns around the fleet.

In total, the fleet was relatively small, significantly smaller than that of the Rebel Alliance at its height, but it was all they had.

Leia gazed out the bridge of the cruiser, a determined look on her face. The Alliance started out small, too. She knew big things could come from humble beginnings. She had fought this same fight once before.

Suddenly, alarms blared throughout the cruiser.

"Proximity alert!" Admiral Ackbar shouted.

"They found us," Leia muttered, dread in her voice. "That's impossible."

Outside the bridge window, Leia could see over sixty First Order destroyers, spread out in a wide formation. The New Republic fleet stood in between the Resistance ships and the First Order.

One final ship exited hyperspace above the rest of the First Order's fleet, so massive its shadow covered the rest of the destroyers below it. It was one massive flying wing, bristling with thousands of gun turrets. Ten rows of double-stacked engines propelled the ship through space.

Poe gaped in awe at the immensity of the First Order vessel. "That's Snoke's ship… A mega destroyer…"

Poe's mind raced for a solution. "Can we jump to lightspeed?"

"We only have enough fuel resources for just one jump," Connix reported.

"Well, then, do it. We gotta get out of here."

Leia held up her hand. "Wait. They've tracked us through lightspeed."

"That's impossible," Poe said.

"Yes… And they've done it.

BB-8 chirped nervously, rolling up to Poe with Finn trailing behind.

"So if we jump through lightspeed, they'll just find us again and we'll be out of fuel," Finn confirmed.

"Tell the Republic fleet to get into a defensive formation," Leia ordered. "Have their support ships and fighters engage the First Order fleet."

Leia's message was relayed on the Starkhawks and Republic cruisers. Hangar-loads of X-wings poured into space, forming up into attack squadrons. A-wings and bombers dropped from the pylons of corvettes, flying into action.

General Hux stood on the bridge of the mega destroyer, observing the helpless Republic and Resistance fleets before him. "All ships, open fire. Target the Republic fleet first, they pose the greatest threat."

The First Order destroyers unleashed all their firepower, their turbolaser batteries aimed forward towards the enemy fleet. A few Republic support ships succumbed to the overwhelming attack.

The mega destroyer powered up its cannons, raining down destruction upon the New Republic fleet with a barrage of fiery green bolts. One of the closest corvettes shattered in half as cannon bolts ripped through its thin midsection. Another corvette's bridge exploded shortly after.

An intermixed storm of cannon and turbolaser continued to pound the Republic fleet. One of the Mon Cal cruisers closest to the First Order ships lost its shield, leaving it defenseless. Hundreds of blaster bolts slammed into the cruiser, splitting it into fiery heaps of scrap.

Waves of TIE fighters deployed from the hangar of the mega destroyer. In the lead was a unique fighter, with slim, pronged wings and a flatter cockpit body. Red glass made up the viewport. It was Kylo Ren's personal fighter, the TIE Silencer.

The Republic X-wings, bombers and support ships closed in on the First Order destroyers.

The pilot in the cockpit of the lead X-wing began his broadcast. "All wings, this is Renegade Leader. Focus your attacks on the reactors in the hollow midsection of the destroyers."

Renegade Leader rolled his X-wing into a dive, dozens of his squadron mates following on his tail. The destroyer's turbolasers began to focus their fire on the fighters, taking down one of his wingmen.

"Renegade Three, Seven and Four, form up on me! We're going inside the destroyer! All other ships, make sure to provide us with cover."

Four X-wings swooped in low across the destroyer's bow, entering the hollow midsection of the destroyers. The fighters weaved in and out of support pillars, quickly approaching the reactor.

Renegade Leader locked in on the reactor. He fired all four cannons, signaling for his wingmen to do the same. Red blaster bolts impacted the reactor core, setting off a chain of small explosions.

"All wings, get out of the destroyer. It's coming down." Renegade Leader hit revved his engines to full power. His X-wing shot out of the destroyer's interior, followed by the other three fighters.

Explosions erupted throughout the destroyer's hull, tearing the ship apart. The X-wing pilots cheered as the First Order vessel collapsed in on itself.

Kylo Ren and the TIE fighters converged in on the Republic Fleet. A massive dogfight broke out, a storm of red and green blaster bolts whizzing in every direction.

Kylo zoomed in towards a pair of X-wings, guns blazing. One of them exploded, prompting the other to maneuver frantically. It was no use, as Kylo was a superior pilot in a more nimble fighter. He thumbed the trigger, sending blaster bolts into the Republic fighter in front of him. It spun out of control before disappearing into a ball of flame.

Kylo looked around, surveying the battle. Slightly to his left, two Republic corvettes were approaching one of the First Order destroyers. He hit the afterburner, red engines glowing as they increased to full power.

The TIE Silencer barreled in on the corvette. Kylo fired, green blaster bolts slicing through the bridge and continuing to impact along the length of the ships. The corvette crumbled, having been completely cut in half.

The second corvette arrived over the destroyer, barely surviving the turbolaser fire impacting its underbelly. The three high-charge bombs slung along the midsection of the corvettes were unlatched, falling onto the surface of destroyer below. Fiery clouds erupted from the wedge-shaped hull.

Several TIE fighters flew onto the scene, finishing off the crippled corvette.

Angered by the destruction of one his vessels, Kylo channeled his hatred into focus. He sped across the fray of fighters, dodging blaster fire with ease. Ahead of him, several X-wings were preparing to make an attack run on the inside of a destroyer.

Renegade Leader continued towards the destroyer, full throttle. He flew parallel to the side of the destroyer, preparing to enter the midsection.

Suddenly, the wingman to his left exploded. Renegade Leader looked up to see the TIE Silencer barreling towards him head-on. He broke right, the slim black ship flying past him. Another X-wing was taken down, leaving Renegade Leader and another wingman to enter the hollow interior structure of the destroyer.

Kylo swung his ship around in hot pursuit of the fighters. He spun his ship through the interior of the destroyer, steadily catching up to the two X-wings.

Renegade Leader was shocked at the skill of the pilot pursuing him. His wingman was now in range of the enemy fighter's cannons. "Renegade Three, behind you!"

Renegade Three looked behind him to see a stream of blaster bolts tear off his upper-left wing. The ship spiraled out of control, careening into a support pillar.

Renegade Leader began to weave in out of metal beams, trying to lose his pursuer to no avail. Kylo winded his way behind the X-wing, firing his cannons. The Republic fighter shattered under the impact of the TIE Silencer's rapid-fire guns. Kylo flew straight through the flaming debris, exiting back into the main battle.

Hux smirked at the scene that lay before him. Republic ships continued to explode in succession, unable to bear the combined firepower of the First Order fleet.

A Starhawk made a run towards the mega destroyer, all guns firing. It passed between two destroyers, pummeling both into submission with its high-powered guns. The Starhawk continued at full speed towards the bridge of the First Order flagship.

Hux never once felt any sort of fear as the Republic warship approached. The mega destroyer focused all of its fire on the Starhawk, easily obliterating the vessel.

The majority of the Republic fleet was now destroyed or had obtained critical damage. Three of the Starhawks had been destroyed, while one began to retreat out of range of the mega destroyer's cannons.

Hux contacted Kylo Ren, his hologram appearing in the viewport of the TIE Silencer. "Ren, the last Starhawk is moving out of range of our cannons. Take your squadron and shut down its main thrusters immediately."

Kylo flipped his TIE Silencer around, jetting towards the Starhawk. He lined up the rear engines in his sights and began to fire. A few engines had been taken out when two X-wings and A-wing began to blast at Kylo's fighter.

Gripping the flight controls, Kylo put his fighter into a step dive, skimming along the surface of the Starhawk. The two X-wings fired at him from behind, their bolts hitting their own ship as they missed their target.

Kylo abruptly pulled up, doing a complete loop. He then braked, coming in behind the two X-wings flying next to each other in tight formation. He blasted the first X-wing, which spun out into the second.

As the TIE Silencer wound its way around the bow of the Starhawk, it took down an A-wing, which crashed into the Starkhawk's hatchet-shaped front end.

Kylo swung back around to the rear of the Republic ship. Thumbing the trigger on his fire controls, the remaining engines flared and cracked as they sputtered out. The Starhawk came to halt.

The mega destroyer concentrated all its firepower on the Starhawk, which crumbled after several more cannon strikes.

Leia watched the carnage unfold from her cruiser. "They've got us. Most of our fleet is already gone."

Poe stepped up. "Not yet, they don't. Permission to jump in an X-wing and blow something up?"

"Permission granted."

Poe run off, BB-8 following at his heels.

Leia turned around to address the rest of the bridge. "Admiral, swing us around!"

Ackbar nodded, barking out orders. "Full astern. Rotate shields!"

Kylo noticed the Resistance ships begin to retreat. He knew his mother was at the helm of the main cruiser. Now was the time to prove himself.

"Follow my lead." Kylo gathered three other TIE fighters and headed towards the four Resistance ships.

Inside the hangar, Resistance ships began to fire up. The Republic ships were gone, and they were the last line of the defense. The pilots knew their chance of victory was slim to none. They simply chose to go down fighting the First Order, to give the remaining Resistance capital ships time to escape.

"Green Squadron, to launch position," a flight controller shouted, waving a pair of A-wing into position. The hangar was full of pilots running to their fights, and crews prepping their ships for battle.

Poe ran down the hallway connected the bridge to the main hangar, his faithful droid close behind. Soldiers, pilots and technicians were scrambling to their battle stations all around him.

"When we get there, jump in and fire her up!" Poe said to BB-8.

Kylo saw the shape of the Resistance cruiser become closer with each passing second. In front of him, the Resistance cargo vessel cracked under the stress of the unrelenting cannon fire. However, the shields of the remaining ships were too strong for long-range bombardment to be effective.

The TIE Silencer came in behind the Resistance cruiser, which had its large blue engines running at full thrust. Kylo and his wingmen flew low over the top of the cruiser, strafing it with their cannons. Comms antennaes and gun emplacements exploded in quick succession.

Kylo yanked his flight controls, sending his ship into an intensive series of barrel rolls. He continued to fire all his cannons, explosions dotting the side of the cruisers as he skimmed his way along it. Kylo then leveled out, flying straight down a wide tunnel that led into the cruiser's main hangar.

As he approached the hangar, he armed his torpedoes, which extended from each wing. He fired, the two bright purple projectiles streaming from his fighter.

Poe rounded a corner, sprinting into the hangar towards his black X-wing. The two torpedoes entered the hangar, impacting a row of parked fighters. A massive explosion rocked the hangar, enveloped the fighters, crew and pilots. Poe and BB-8 were thrown backwards out of the hangar by the force of the explosion.

Sliding across the ground on his back, Poe looked up at the fiery remains of the hangar as emergency blast doors closed shut. Sirens began to blare.

A hand gripped Poe's shoulder.

"Poe, are you all right?"

The pilot looked up, disoriented, to see Finn standing above him.

"We need to get out of range of those Star Destroyers," Poe mumbled, attempting to stand.

"We need to what?" Admiral Ackbar questioned.

"Full engines ahead," Leia commanded. "Get out of range of the Star Destroyers and the fighters will fall back."

The cruiser accelerated, pushing ahead at full power. The small group of TIE fighters turned around, heading towards the front of the ship.

"All craft, full engines! Concentrate rear shields!" Ackbar shouted.

Suddenly, three First Order fighters screamed past the bridge. Leia perked up. She sensed him, her son, flying one of those fighters.

Kylo felt his mother's presence as well. His fighter was positioned above the cruiser's bridge, in perfect position to fire. His targeting reticle highlighted the bridge, beeping in anticipation of him taking the shot.

He put his thumb over the trigger, then hesitated. Everything around him had been tuned out. Kylo only felt himself and the bridge, time moving impossibly slow. He inhaled deeply, conflict evident in his expression.

Slowly, he removed his thumb from the trigger. He exhaled. Kylo felt his mother: her fear, her pride, her regrets. All of it spilled it before him.

Kylo snapped back to reality as two torpedoes soared past him, fired by his wingmen. He watched in horror as the torpedoes sailed towards the bridge.

Leia had felt her son's conflict. How he resisted taking the shot that could've ended her life. Now, even as the torpedoes raced towards her bridge, she felt a sense of calm and peace. Time seemed to slow down as the torpedoes impacted. The bridge crew was blown into the vast darkness of space.

Leia felt herself being pulled out of the bridge, and extended her arm. Channeling all her focus and survival instinct, she harnessed whatever control of the Force she had and gripped ahold of the airlock door, propelling herself out of the bridge and to safety.

Several Resistance soldiers ran to the airlock, grabbing onto Leia as she collapsed in their arms.

Kylo continued to fly his Silencer, shooting at one of the corvettes next to the main cruiser. Two of his wingmen were taken out by the corvette's blaster cannons.

Hux's hologram appeared in Kylo's cockpit. "Ren, the Resistance has pulled out of range. We can't cover you at this distance. Return to the fleet."

Kylo grunted in frustration, pulling away as the TIE fighter next to him exploded.

Hux observed the fleeing Resistance vessels with distaste. Captain Peavy stood slightly behind him.

The General turned to face the Captain. "What is the point of all this if we can't blow up three pathetic ships?"

"Well, they're faster and lighter, sir. They can't lose us, but they can keep at a range where our cannons are ineffective against their shields," Peavy explained.

Hux continued to stare intently out the bridge window, deep in thought.

"Shall we prepare to launch more TIE fighters, sir?" Peavy asked.

"We need not waste our fighters on another frontal attack," Hux replied practically. "We know the Resistance has a shortage of fuel. They won't last long fleeing like this. It's just a matter of time."

Resistance soldiers ran down the hallway, carrying Leia on a stretcher.

"Move! Out of the way, everybody! Give room!"

A medic scanned her with a device. "Life signs are weak, but she's fighting."

As they continued to carry Leia, the binary beacon slipped off her wrist and clattered to the floor. It went unnoticed until Finn picked it up and turned it over in his hands.

Chewie sat near the Falcon at dusk, a campfire flickering in front of him. In his hands, he held a skinned and roasted bird.

Unbeknownst to the Wookie, a cloaked figure slid through the night and snuck up the Falcon's ramp. The figure wound its way to the ship's cockpit, before removing his hood to reveal the bearded face of Luke Skywalker.

Luke flicked a switch on the cockpit, and the Falcon's onboard systems hummed to life. He was overcome with an intense wave of nostalgia. Memories of past adventures flooded his mind. Memories of Han…

The old Jedi's thoughts were interrupted by a faint beeping noise. Luke stepped back into the main cabin, spotting the source: the blue and white droid he'd gone through so much with.

"Artoo?" he said quietly.

The droid confirmed its identity with a series of ecstatic beeps.

"Artoo!" Luke cheered, walking over to the droid and bending over, putting his hand on the droid's dome head.

R2-D2 beeped excitedly, trying to fill in Luke on all that'd he'd missed.

"Yes…Yeah, I know."

R2 whistled angrily.

"Hey, sacred island, watch the language," Luke scolded.

The droid slightly tilted its body and beeped sadly.

Luke chuckled and patted the R2's head. "Old friend." He sighed to himself. "I wish I could make you understand… But I'm not coming back. Nothing can make me change my mind."

R2 swiveled his head, projecting a fuzzy blue hologram of a young princess in a white gown.

"Years ago, you served my father in the Clone Wars. Now he begs you to help him in his struggle against the Empire. I regret that I am unable to present my father's request to you in person—"

"That was a cheap move," Luke grumbled.

"—but my ship has fallen under attack, and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Alderaan has failed. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope."

As the hologram vanished, Luke continued to stare at the spot where it once stood. Every word of that message was etched in his mind. It was the message that had catapulted him from the status of lonely Tatooine farm boy to revered Jedi Knight. He never imagined what his life would be like if he hadn't taken a leap of faith and acted upon Leia's plea for help.

Along the way, he had faced struggles, challenges and hardship. He knew that these lie ahead for the girl, Rey, as well. A nostalgic feeling welled up deep inside him, the slightest spark of hope.

Rey entered her hut, illuminated by faint torchlight. She rested her staff against the wall, removed her vest and boots, and lay down on a stone platform covered with woven blankets. She closed her eyes.

She stayed in a light sleep until she heard a shuffling noise nearby. Her eyes shot open, revealing Luke standing directly over her. She gasped.

"Tomorrow at dawn. Three lessons," Luke stated. "I will teach you the ways of the Jedi… and why they need to end."

"General Organa, Leia, is unconscious but recovering," Captain D'Acy said, addressing a crowd of Resistance pilots, officers and soldiers gathered in the secondary bridge. "That's the only good news I have. Admiral Ackbar, all our leadership, they're gone."

"Oh, dear, oh, dear," C-3PO muttered. The crowd murmured amongst themselves before turning their attention back to D'Acy.

"Leia was the sole survivor on the bridge. If she were here, she'd say save your sorrow for after the fight. To that end, the chain of command is clear as to who should take her place."

Poe straightened himself in his seat, waiting his name to be called.

"Vice Admiral Holdo of the cruiser Ninka," D'Acy finished.

Poe was stunned as he watched a violet-haired women in an ornate gown take the stage.

"Thank you, Commander." She cleared her throat. "Two thousand of us on three ships. We're the very last of the Resistance. But we're not alone. In every corner of the galaxy, the downtrodden and oppressed know our symbol, and they put their hope in it."

Poe rolled his eyes at the artistic and poetic nature of the speech.

"We are the spark that will light the fire that will restore the Republic. That spark, this Resistance, must survive. That is our mission. Now, to your stations. And may the Force be with us."

As the crowd got up and dispersed, Poe turned his alien wingman, C'ai, who was sitting next to him during the speech.

"That's Admiral Holdo? Battle of Chyron Belt Admiral Holdo?" Poe questioned.

C'ai responded in an alien dialect, shrugging his shoulders.

"Not what I expected." Poe strode away from C'ai, heading towards Vice Admiral Holdo. "Vice Admiral?"

"Commander Dameron."

"With our current fuel consumption, there's a very limited amount of time that we can stay out of range of those Star Destroyers."

"Very kind of you to make me aware," she said, not even bothering to look directly at Poe. Instead, she focused on a starchart in front of her.

Poe was beginning to lose his patience. "And we need to shake 'em before we can find a new base, so, what's our plan?"

"Our plan, captain? Not commander, right?" she said sweetly, intentionally mocking the ace pilot. "Wasn't it Leia's last official act to demote youfor your dreadnought plan where we lost our entire bombing fleet?"

Poe's temper began to rise. "'Captain.' 'Commander.' You can call me whatever you like. I just wanna know what's going on."

"Of course you do. I understand," Holdo began. "I've dealt with plenty of trigger-happy flyboys like you. You're impulsive. Dangerous. And the last thing we need right now. So stick to your post and follow my orders."

Holdo turned away from Poe and continued to discuss logistics with other crew members. Poe stared at her in disgust, repulsed by the way she had treated the best pilot in the fleet. He was a man who put his life on the line, making sure the Resistance won the day, while she was a stuck-up aristocrat too self-absorbed in her own delusions of what it meant to be a leader.

Down inside the bowels of the cruiser, Finn crept through a series of maintenance corridors, a backpack and blaster in hand. He turned a corner, slipping into the escape pod bay.

As he took another step forward, he saw a girl in a greasy brown jumpsuit sitting on a crate, burying her face in her hands. She was small and thin, with dark hair pulled into a ponytail and tanned skin. Around her neck hung a golden crescent-shaped medallion.

Finn heard sobs coming from the girl and slowly backed up to avoid the awkward situation. He didn't get very far as her snapped up.

The girl glared at him through teary eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey….uh, hi," Finn greeted awkwardly. "Uh, I was... You know, I was just..."

Her glare turned into a cheery smile. "You're Finn!"

"Yeah, I'm Finn…how did you know that?"

"You're a hero! You left the First Order, and then what you did on the Starkiller Base... When we heard about it, my sister Paige said, 'Rose, that's a real hero. Know right from wrong and don't run away when it gets hard.'"

"Hero… I don't know about that," Finn said.

"So modest," she whispered, starry-eyed.

Finn was taken aback by her sudden admiration.

"Sorry, I'm just a mechanic. I fix things all day," she explained. "Talking with Resistance heroes is not my forte."

She continued to stare at a confused Finn awhile before speaking again. "I'm Rose."

"Breathe," Finn instructed, holding his arms out in fear Rose would mob him. "Look, like I said, I'm not a Resistance hero, but it was nice talking to you, Rose. So… may the Force be with you."

Finn scooted over towards the escape pod hatch, but Rose continued to speak, despite Finn's cue that the conversation was over.

"You know, just this morning, I've had to stun three people trying to jump ship in this escape pod," she said, pulling out an electrified baton and waving it around a few times.

"That's disgraceful," Finn lied, trying to get her to leave. "Anyway, I... Gotta get back to what I was doing, so..."

"What were you doing?" she asked, her voice filled with genuine curiosity.

"Oh, just... Doing some checks. Checking the escape pods."

Rose's face became filled with realization. "By boarding one… with a packed bag."

Finn held up his hands in defense. "Listen, I—"

Rose whipped her out her stun baton, shocking Finn in the center of the chest. Spasms racked his body before he tumbled to the floor and lay motionless.

When Finn awoke, he couldn't feel the majority of his body. He slightly craned his neck, observing that he was lying down on top of a hovering maintenance cart. Pulling that cart along was Rose.

"I can't move. I can't move." Finn tried to move his arms, but they barely responded.

"I know…. I'm taking you to the brig and turning you in for desertion," Rose said. Her voice was full of disappointment.

"I was not deserting. I told you that!"

Rose spun around to face Finn. "My sister just died," she said angrily, hot tears beginning to form. "She was protecting the fleet. And you were running away."

"I'm sorry about your sister," Finn whispered with genuine sympathy. "But this fleet is doomed, and if my friend comes back to it, she's doomed, too."

Finn shuffled his body around, finally regaining some feeling. He thrust his arm up, showing the binary beacon. "I've gotta get this beacon far away from here. Then she'll find me and be safe."

"You're just another traitor," Rose responded.

"Look, we can't outrun the First Order fleet," Finn said. "They can track us through lightspeed."

Rose was astonished. "They can track usthrough lightspeed?"

"Yeah. They'd just show up thirty seconds later and we'd have blown a ton of fuel, which, by the way we're dangerously short on."

"Active tracking," Rose muttered to herself.

"What now?"

"Hyperspace tracking is new tech, but the principle must be the same as any active tracker," Rose explained. "They're only tracking us from the lead ship."

Finn looked around, still slightly confused by all the technical jargon.

Rose continued to speak. "But we can't get to the tracker. It's an A-class process, controlled from the main bridge. But it does have a dedicated power breaker."

"Can you explain that little slower?" Finn asked.

Rose sighed, shaking her head. "Basically, the only way we could shut off a tracking system would be going aboard its bridge, which is probably guarded by hundreds of troopers, or we could go to its breaker room."

"So? We just find a way to blow it up."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Currently, the First Order's only tracking us from one destroyer, the lead one. If we blew it up, they'd only start tracking us from another destroyer. But if we can sneak on board the lead ship and disable the tracker without them realizing, then we can escape.

"They won't realize it's off for one system cycle. About six minutes. It's plently of time to jump to lightspeed and get away."

Finn's eyes lit up. "Years ago I was stationed aboard that mega destroyer. I was assigned guard duty for the breaker room. I can get us there if I have to. The problem is shutting the tracker down."

"I can do it," Rose said. "It's pretty standard between all types of ships, it doesn't matter if its First Order or not."

"Just give it to me one more time, simpler," Poe said, addressing Finn and Rose. The three stood inside a small briefing room, accompanied only by C-3PO.

"We sneak on board. Disable the tracker. Our fleet escapes before they realize," Finn explained.

Poe rubbed his chin. "Hmm… that could work… How'd you two meet?"

"Just luck," Rose chimed in.

Poe chuckled. "Yeah? Good luck?

"Not sure yet," she said truthfully.

"Poe, we gotta do this," Finn interrupted. "It'll save the fleet and it'll save Rey."

C-3PO, who had been tracking the conversation the entire time, butted in. "If I must be the sole voice of reason, Admiral Holdo will never agree to this plan."

"Yeah, you're right, Threepio," Poe agreed. "It's a 'need-to-know' plan, and she doesn't."

"That wasn't exactly my—"

"All right, you guys shut down that tracker," Poe said. "I'll be here to jump us to lightspeed. The question is, how do we sneak the two of youonto Snoke's Destroyer?"

"We steal clearance codes," Rose suggested.

"No, they're Bio-Hexacrypt and rescrambled every hour," Finn described. "We can't get through their security shields undetected. Nobody can."

"I think I might know a somebody," Poe replied. He pressed a few buttons on the circular projector table in front of him, and a hologram of an old, suave-looking man. Despite his age, his dark skin had few wrinkles, and streaks of grey were present in his black hair and mustache.

"This is Lando Calrissian, an old friend of Leia''s from the days of the Rebellion," Poe explained. "Since retiring, he currently runs a resort world called Canto Bight. The highest members of society frequent this place, from powerful politicians to business tycoons. These people are affiliated with both the First Order and the Republic. But, since Lando wants to keep his riches intact, he keeps the world neutral. It's open to any faction as long as they don't bring any war his way.

"Despite this, he still has a soft spot for Leia, and would be willing do any favors for her as long as it won't cause too much trouble. Either Lando or someone close to him at Canto Bight has the resources or know-how to break through the mega-destroyer's shields. It's our best bet."

"Where would we find Lando Calrissian?" Finn asked.

"In his residence. You can't miss it."

Finn sighed before looking up at Poe. "I'll do it."

"We'll do it." Rose stepped forward to stand beside Finn.

Finn rolled his eyes, then unclipped the beacon from his wrist. He gazed at the pulsating light for a few seconds, running his fingers over the device. Finally, he handed it to Poe.

The ace pilot accepted it, knowing Finn was reaffirming his commitment to this mission. "Take BB-8 with you," he said. "He's no use to me here without my personal X-wing. I've always found that you'll never know when you need a droid."

Finn nodded. "I'll bring him back in one piece. I promise." He then left the briefing room with Rose.

Poe sighed. "You just make to come back in one piece too buddy…" He watched as Finn and Rose walked down the hallway, praying this wouldn't be the last time he saw his friend.


	3. Part 3

Rey's eyes fluttered open as light filtered in through the window of the stone hut. She rolled over in her primitive bed, swinging her legs off and resting her feet on the floor.

Kylo sat upright in a stiff chair, a spherical medical droid removing the stitches from his scar. He winced slightly as his fresh skin was unveiled. His eyes caught a small blurry motion, contrasting against the black metal walls. The blur slowly began to materialize into the shape of a figure.

Rey rubbed her eyes. When she opened them, she saw Kylo Ren sitting across from her. Panicking, she grabbed her silver blaster pistol lying next to her and fired it at the black-clad man.

Kylo shuddered as the blaster bolt impacted his chest. He looked down, and everything was normal. He was still in the medical ward, but with Rey in front of him.

Rey watches as stones tumbled from the wall of her hut where the blaster bolts just hit. Confused, she stepped outside of her hut.

Kylo watched as Rey got up and left the room. He followed her down the hall, raising his hand. "You'll bring Luke Skywalker to me."

She turned around, but remained unfazed by his attempted to freeze her. He realized that his Force powers had no effect on her. What he saw was merely a mirage.

"You're not doing this. The effort would kill you," Kylo mused. "Can you see my surroundings?"

Rey's expression was one of fiery anger. "You're gonna pay for what you did!"

Kylo ignored her comment. "I can't see yours…Just you."

Rey continued to pant heavily, glaring at him.

"So, no," Kylo confirmed. "This is something else."

Behind Rey, a door creaked open. Luke stepped out.

Kylo noticed Rey acknowledge another presence. "Luke," he muttered.

"What's that about?" Luke shouted down at Rey. She turned around, noticed blue amphibian-like creatures in white robes holding fragments of cracked stones. The creatures were screeching to one another in an alien dialect.

"I was cleaning my blaster. It went off," Rey lied.

"Come one now, let's get started," Luke said. He began to hike up a mossy hill.

Rey quickly ran back into her hut to get fully dressed and grab her stuff, then caught up to Luke.

"Who were those things?" she asked.

"Caretakers. Island natives. They've kept up the Jedi structures since they were built."

"I don't think they like me."

"Can't imagine why," Luke mused.

"And what about those birds?"

"The ancient texts called them porgs. Birds attuned with the Force that acted as the guardians of the island. Now try to keep pace, we have a lot ahead of us."

Rey and Luke stood inside a sizeable cave. The top was open, allowing sunlight to flood the inside and illuminate the small pond underneath. A precipice jutted out from the dome to overlook the ocean.

Rey observed the pond, where a stone mosaic of a meditating man, half shrouded in dark, half in light, held a sword. She cocked her head, trying to understand the meaning, before Luke tapped her shoulder to signal her to move on.

The two walked side by side onto the precipice, where a rounded stone pedestal stood. Rey stopped, but Luke continued to walk and gaze out over the ocean.

"Master Skywalker, we need you to bring the Jedi back because Kylo Ren is strong with the dark side of the Force," Rey said in a robotic tone, having rehearsed this speech to herself multiple times last night.

"What do you know about the Force?" Luke questioned.

"It's a power that Jedi have that lets them control people and… make things float."

"Impressive. Every word in that sentence was wrong." Luke tapped the pedestal next to him. "Lesson one, sit here, legs crossed."

Rey stepped up the pedestal, moving into a cross-legged position. She looked up at Luke in eager anticipation for her first lesson.

"The Force is not a power you have. It's not about lifting rocks. It's the energy between all things, a tension, a balance, that binds the universe together," Luke explained.

Rey was confused. "Okay. But what is it?"

Luke pressed her hands against the stone pedestal. "Close your eyes," he instructed. "Breathe. Now, reach out."

Rey immediately threw her hand outwards, her fingers feeling at the air. Luke snapped his cane down on her knuckles.

"Ow!" she cried, shaking her stinging hand. "You meant reach out like..."

Luke raised his eyebrows, signaling his obvious answer.

"I'll try again," she said innocently.

"Breathe," the old Jedi Master said calmly. "just breathe. Reach out with your feelings. What do you see?"

Rey closed her eyes. Slowly, she began to feel the interconnecting life force linking everything around her. She felt the presence of wildlife and of the rotting corpses buried beneath the dirt. The life energy of the dead transferred into the vegetation, bringing new growth.

"The island," she began. "Life. Death and decay, that feeds new life."

Images flashed through her mind. _Rays of sunlight reflecting on the island rocks_. "Warmth."

 _Ocean swells gathered. The rain pouring in sheets._ "Cold."

 _A nest full of porgs rested against a rock face, the mother protecting her young_. "Peace."

 _A strong wave crashed into a porg's den, destroying a cluster of eggs_. "Violence."

"And between it all?" Luke whispered into her ear.

"Balance. An energy. A Force." Rey felt the presence of the island represented by a harmonious flow encompassing everything. One action led into another, and the cycle continued. Everything had its opposite, creating balance. One cannot exist without the other.

The sensation was interrupted by Luke's calm voice. "And inside you?"

"Inside me…that same Force," Rey answered.

"And this is the lesson. That Force does not belong to the Jedi. To say that if the Jedi die, the light dies, is vanity. Can you feel that?"

 _A moss-covered hole_ _was contained within the rocky coastline. It led downwards into the dark, impossible to see what lay within._ "There's something else…beneath the island," she muttered, but Luke ignored her.

"Closer your eyes again," he instructed. "Listen and feel. Don't think."

Rey closed her eyes again, focusing on the warm sunshine on her face and the sound of the crashing waves below her.

"Balance," Luke commented, "balance is what you saw. Powerful light, powerful darkness. When the tide shifts one way, it shifts back the other. Try to feel that."

Rey continued to clear her mind, and she begun to feel detached from her body. _She opened her eyes, and saw herself standing on a flat, clear blue body of water. Despite it being shallow enough for her to stand, she couldn't see the bottom, only her reflection. The water extended in every direction, vast and endless. In the sky were two moons, one white, one black. Both shone brightly, trying to envelope the glow of the other._

"The light and the dark are merely a power source, drawing from two different sides of our inner spirit," Luke explained. "The light draws energy from feelings of peace and calm, while the dark draws from chaos and intensity. All beings across the galaxy have this inside them.

"Some are more adept at channeling that energy than others, beings like you and I. Early users of the Force sat here, like you are now. They saw what you see now: a moon of dark and a moon of light. The manuscripts from the tree say this planet is strong in its connection with the Force. It was here that the light and the dark were first explored.

"The dark side of the Force isn't inherently evil. It's merely another way manipulate the energy surrounding us. But people succumb to that power, unable to handle the tumult of emotions required to use the dark side.

"Learning the ways of the light or the dark allows one to enter their spiritual journey with the Force. From this state of either light or dark, the gap can be bridged between them. With inner training, one can reach a balance, a spiritual enlightenment. Try to feel the other side, Rey. Slowly bridge the dark and the light."

 _Rey stared up at the two moons in the sky. She already felt a familiar presence from the white orb, and began to fixate on the darker one._ Rey's physical body began to tense up. She felt extreme power flow through her body. A storm of emotions clouded her mind, diminishing any sense of peace and calm.

The muscles in her fingers began to tighten, and suddenly the rock pedestal below her cracked open into a deep fissure. The cracks spread, working their way along the rock precipice.

"Resist it Rey!" Luke shouted, trying to bring his new student back to the physical world. "Rey! Rey!"

She suddenly snapped back into reality, gasping for air as she tumbled off the pedestal, palms impacting the rocky ground. She continued to breath heavily, shaken by her experience. Finally, she propped herself up on the pedestal to face the aging Jedi.

"You went straight to the dark," Luke said, a glint of fear in his eyes. "And you couldn't even stop yourself."

"But I didn't see you. Nothing from you," Rey said. "You've closed yourself off from the Force… Of course you have."

Luke's eyes were wide open, and he wore a horrified expression. "I've seen this raw strength only once before, in Ben Solo. It didn't scare me enough then. It does now."

Luke immediately turned away, his body still quivering. He strode back into the cave and out onto the path, winding his way back to the village.

Rey continued to lean against the pedestal, staring into the distance as the wind blew strands of hair into her face.

A small transport pod shot from one of the intact hangars of the Resistance cruiser.

It caught the attention of Admiral Holdo as a small blip appeared on a nearby monitor.

"What was that?" she questioned.

"Nothing, admiral," replied Lieutenant Connix, who was standing in front of the tracking display. "Passing debris."

Finn and Rose stood hunched over in their seats inside the cramped cockpit of the transport pod.

"The fleet's got 220 hours of fuel left," Rose reported. "This ship's hyperdrive is a class-C, so it's slower than normal. But we should still have enough time to complete the mission if we work quickly."

"Are the coordinates set for Canto Bight?" Finn asked.

Rose flicked a few switches on the cockpit's control board. "They are now."

"Then what are we waiting for. We're losing time already," Finn said.

Rose nodded and pulled a few levers. The transport pod lurched forward, disappearing into hyperspace.

Poe Dameron and fifteen other pilots watched from an observation viewport as the transport pod jumped to lightspeed.

"I sure hope to all hell this plan works, but time's running against us," the Poe said, addressing the other Resistance pilots. "One measure isn't enough. Holdo won't do anything, so it's up to us. If we attack an important First Order target, it could draw their destroyers away from us."

Several pilots nodded in approval, ready to bring the fight to the enemy after their recent humiliating defeat.

Poe whipped out a com-link. "Tallie, how many ships do we have?"

"We were able to repair sixteen from the maintenance bay," Tallie responded. "They're not in optimal shape, but they're flyable."

"That's all we need." Poe turned to his squadron. "Pilots, meet me in the lower hangar bay. Lieutenant Connix has us covered."

The pilots donned their helmets and jogged down the hall towards their fighters.

The planet Tizon was covered in a stout, mazelike industrial city. The entire place was a dark grey, except for the crimson red First Order flags that flew above the settlement's capitol. Citizens in drab-looking uniforms walked along the narrow streets, focused only on their assigned tasks.

The monotony was interrupted by wailing sirens. Workers looked up from their posts towards holo-displays mounted on buildings.

A First Order officer's face appeared in a blue, static-filled projection. "Attention citizens, air raid is inbound. Get inside the nearest structure."

The warning played over and over as the city's inhabitants frantically rushed for cover. Fleeing people shoved each other aside trying to reach safety.

A small fleet of starfighters was visible in the light blue sky above. It was mostly comprised of X-wings, with a few A-wings and bombers. The craft all had faded paintjobs and scratch marks.

Poe saw the black city sprawling below him from the cockpit of the lead X-wing. "Ready bombs and torpedoes, our first target is the capitol. Just make sure to save enough payload for our bombing run on the factories."

"Copy that, Black Leader," Tallie replied.

The formation of Resistance fighters and bombers began to dip low over the city. Anti-fighter blaster cannons fired upwards from the ground below, but were ineffective in taking out the Resistance ships.

Poe watched the capitol building grow closer, the rooftops below him whizzing by underneath his cockpit. "All wings, weapons free!"

The X-wings and A-wings began launching sets of torpedoes into the black domed capitol. The bombers followed closely behind, dropping part of their payload onto the remains of the building.

"The capitol is gone, Black Leader," Tallie reported. "Let's move onto the next target. Head to position zero two six."

The Resistance fighters and bombers continued to evade blaster fire coming from the surface as they made their way to the factory. Several First Order tanks guarded the main roadway leading into the manufacturing plant.

Poe and Tallie maneuvered towards the tanks, using their ship-mounted cannons to blast them into heated scrap.

"Blow that factory!" Poe radioed to his wingmen. The Resistance flight group released the rest of their torpedoes and bombs. The row of factories erupted upwards in a massive fireball.

"Both targets destroyed. Head back to the fleet," Poe ordered. The Resistance formation pulled up and zoomed into the distance, leaving behind the burning wreckage of the city.

A rain storm enveloped the island on Ahch-To. Rey and Chewie stood inside the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon, still parked along the island's coast.

"Still can't reach the Resistance?" Rey asked.

Chewie growled dishearteningly, shaking his head.

"Keep at it. If you get through, check their status. And ask about Finn." She exited the ramp of the ship, leaving Chewie behind to continue calibrating the communications system.

Rey stood underneath the drenched Falcon, catching the streams of water that fell from the freighter's sides. Thunder rumbled in the distance.

Kylo Ren overlooked a factory bay of the mega destroyer. The massive fortress ship also doubled as a manufacturing plant for the First Order. Snoke's armies had already been unleashed across the Galaxy, finishing off the remains of the Republic. The machines being built in front of him would be part of the second wave, occupying those worlds and enforcing order.

He then felt a strange presence behind him. A familiar one. He turned around, staring in awe at what he saw.

Rey continued to stare at the water dripping into her outstretched palm. Suddenly the sounds of the pouring rain seemed silent. She looked up, startled to see Kylo Ren standing in front of her once again.

This time, she knew he wasn't real. It was the same as last time: a mirage. The real Kylo was lightyears away.

Kylo stared at Rey, still bewildered. He noticed she was wet, but couldn't see the rain or her surroundings. "Why is the Force connecting us? You and I."

Rey glared back in anger. "Murderous snake. You're too late. You lost. I found Skywalker."

Despite Rey's anger, Kylo remained calm. "Did he tell you what happened?"

Rey was confused, unsure of what Kylo was referring to.

"The night I destroyed his temple, did he tell you why?" Kylo questioned.

"I know everything I need to know about you," she snapped.

"You do? Ah, you do." Kylo's form took a step forward. "You have that look in your eyes. From the forest. When you called me a monster."

"You are a monster," Rey spat back. Her face was twisted into a look of disgust.

"Yes, I am."

Rey noticed that Kylo's voice was filled with sincerity, almost remorse or regret. Before she could respond, the apparition of him had disspeared.

The cockpit windows of the transport pod reflected the blue light of hyperspace. Finn and Rose sat in their seats, facing away from each other. The majority of their journey had been filled with awkward silence.

Rose finally spoke up. "We're almost to Canto Bight."

Finn nodded slowly. "You stay with the ship. I'll go and find Lando."

Rose frowned. "No way. I'm coming with you."

"Rose, you're a mechanic. You'll hold me back."

"Well I need to stay with you to make sure you don't try to run away again," she retorted.

"I won't run now," Finn snapped. "I left the beacon back with Poe. To save Rey I have to save the fleet."

"How's this Rey person you keep talking about so special?"

"You don't know her," Finn responded coldly. "If you did, you would know."

"Sounds like someone's a little smitten," Rose said teasingly.

Finn intentionally looked away from her. "Just focus on our mission right now, got it?"

"Someone's touchy," Rose muttered. A light began to blink on the console in front of her. "We're here. Dropping out of lightspeed."

The transport pod exited hyperspace, appearing in front of a desert planet. A small body of water was the only distinguishing feature. Rose steered the pod towards it.

The small ship descended over the body of water, approaching a large city. It was made of elaborate stone buildings, reminiscent of a bygone era, blended with advanced lights and technology.

"Welcome to Canto Bight," Rose said.

Finn viewed the exquisite city in awe. This was like nothing he'd ever seen before. He'd spent his life on frontier planets and military installations. Never had he seen any place with such luxury and beauty.

The transport pod zoomed in towards the city, landing in a small beach port.

Finn gaped as he walked the streets of Canto Bight, Rose by his side. The stone buildings, contrasted with white and neon lights, created a unique aesthetic.

They were currently on one of the main streets, working their way towards a large palace that they assumed belonged to Lando. Stone shops lined the cobbled road, marked by ovular glass doors surrounded by a strip of orange neon light. Pure white streetlights hung atop tall posts.

"This…this place…is amazing!" Finn said in bewilderment.

"Hurry up, soldier boy," Rose quipped, grabbed his jacket collar and tugging him along.

"Can you calm down for a second? I've never seen anything like this in my life."

"Look, I grew up in a poor mining system. This isn't exactly common for me either, but you don't see me acting like an idiot over it."

Finn rolled his eyes. "Focus on getting to Lando's palace, okay?"

"Hypocrite," Rose muttered.

"You're impossible," Finn grumbled. He looked ahead, realizing they had arrived at Lando's estate. The two passed through a garden and arrived at a hexagonal fountain with vertical white lights running up the sides. Beyond that was a hallway leading to a jet-black door.

Finn and Rose approached it, passing through several scanners and sensors. As they neared the door, it automatically swung open. Waiting inside were two men dressed in gray uniforms and long black helmets: Canto Bight security officers.

One of the security officers stepped forward. "What is your correspondence with Master Overseer Calrissian?"

"We came here from the Resistance," Finn answered. "General Leia requests a favor from him."

The two security officers shot a knowing look at each other, nodding. "Master Overseer Calrissian is not present right now. He's currently at the casino."

"Thank you for your time," Rose said as Finn turned around and walked off. She ran to catch to up with him.

Night cast its deep shadow over the island. Rey hiked her way up a hill, trying to reach the tree that contained the Jedi texts.

She climbed over its gnarled roots, slipping into the man-sized opening. At the end of the hollow insides was the silhouetted form of the manuscripts, lying on a shelf.

Rey picked up the books and stuffed them into the satchel draped over her shoulder. She closed the top flap and snuck back into the Jedi village.

Once inside her hut, she sat under the torchlight, opening one of the books. It contained diagrams of lightsaber fighting forms, with small descriptions written under each. She examined the first page, absorbing all the knowledge she could before turning to the next.

Rey held her staff high in a fighting position, the heat of the sun beating down on her. In front of her was a rock that stood around seven feet tall, positioned on the edge of cliff. She swung the staff towards the rock, showing her precision by stopping the staff mere inches from it.

She twirled the staff a few more times, warming up for the lightsaber skills she was about to practice. She looked down at the satchel lying beside her, the lightsaber visible as the flap hung open. After bending down and picking it up, she ignited the light blue blade.

Rey examined the beam of energy in front of her, reminded of how she resorted to using it to fight Kylo in the forests of Starkiller Base.

She spun the blade in her hands a few times, smiling. Due to tall those years of practicing with a staff, the skills transferred over fairly well. She started with broad slashes, trying to incorporate what she learned last night into an attack form.

Unbeknownst to her, Luke was observing her from the hilltop above, his hood drawn over his head. He watched her great skill with a mix of awe and apprehension.

Rey brought down the blade, slicing through the air, and back up again. She continued to make a slashing motion, alternating between a forwards and backwards grip. She finally swung the lightsaber at the tall rock, stopping just short of hitting it.

Confident in her abilities, she stepped back and went through the motions again, but faster and with more power behind each stroke. She once again swung the blade towards the rock, with more power and speed than before. She couldn't stop the lightsaber blade, slicing straight through the rock.

The rock then tumbled backwards, falling off the cliff. Rey watched it roll down the rocky cliff face and splash into the ocean below. She turned off the lighsaber and turned around, watching Luke slowly walk away from her, head hung low in disappointment.

Rey sighed to herself, re-igniting the lightsaber and going through the lightsaber forms again.

The sun had dipped low over the ocean horizon. The sky was a shade of dark gray. Rey walked up to her hut, exhausted from today's lightsaber practice. The warm, torch-lit interior of the hut was a welcome relief to Rey as she exited the cold night air.

She sat down on her bed, removing her sweat-drenched vest, boots and arm-wrappings. Reaching under the bed she grabbed the book she had been reading the previous night. She swung her legs up onto the bed and opened the book, reading its contents well into the night.

Luke hiked up a path to a steep mountaintop, Rey following closing behind. Sitting on the peak before them was a large, bell-shaped bronze structure. A circular opening in the top allowed the inside to be illuminated by sunlight.

The Jedi Master and trainee entered the structure through a door surrounded by inscriptions. Murals covered the domed walls inside. Strange instruments surrounded a pedestal in the middle, where a single individual could study and meditate.

"This is the Great Jedi Observatory, where the history and knowledge of the Jedi Order was recorded," Luke explained. "As the Jedi grew, the tree and the texts it contained become a shrine to early knowledge. This became an archive for more elaborate discovery and transcription."

Rey gazed at the murals in awe. On the other side of the observatory there was a circular window overlooking the ocean, multiple spokes coming together to form the inner frame.

"I've seen this place… This same ocean… the same window…" Rey whispered.

Luke cleared his throat, prompting Rey to turn around and face him. "Lesson two. Now that they're extinct, the Jedi are romanticized, deified. But if you strip away the myth and look at their deeds, the legacy of the Jedi is failure. Hypocrisy, hubris."

"That's not true," Rey protested. "As a Jedi, _you_ helped end the tyranny and oppression of the Empire."

"And that same tyranny has only risen again to claim the Galaxy once more," Luke countered. "This has been the pattern of history. To understand, we must go back to the origins of the Jedi, and see their history. Come."

Luke beckoned for Rey to come over and pointed at a mural above him. It showed a man, meditating on an endless flat lake, with two orbs, one light and one dark, in the sky above him.

"This was the start of the Jedi Order and the Sith, the split between light and dark," Luke began. "Eons ago, philosophers and spiritualists would assemble on this island, due to the strong presence of the Force residing around it. They explored the ways of the Force through many different methods. One such discovery was of two different aspects of the Force, the light and the dark."

Luke then moved on to another mural, this one displaying a man centered inside an orb, one half black, the other white.

"One individual became extremely strong in the light, so much so that he was able to bridge his way to the dark, creating a balance. They had achieved an enlightenment that allowed them to far surpass any others at nearly every level. This individual was known as the Prime Jedi, the founder of the Jedi Order."

The next mural showed the Prime Jedi surrounded by a group of others, demonstrating the extent of his spiritual abilities.

"The Prime Jedi gathered individuals with a natural affinity for the Force, and created the Jedi Order. The ancient Jedi only intervened to protect and preserve innocent life. They refrained from pushing their beliefs onto others, hoping to minimize how much they shifted the Force to the Light. While they were still guided by the Light Side, these Jedi adhered to the concept of balance.

"One Jedi believed that the Order wasn't doing enough to influence the path of the Galaxy. He believed only using the power of the Force to bring justice was a waste of potential. They could bring an end to all suffering and conflict and create a perfect Galaxy, but chose to be restrained. This rogue Jedi brought his concerns before the council.

This led into the next mural, where a single man stood tall, encircled by seated Jedi. He was in the middle of speech, arms raised for emphasis.

"The Prime Jedi reminded him that while individual beings can bend the Force at their will, at the same time they are also subject to the will of the Force. One of the hardest struggles of any Force-sensitive person was finding a balance between fate and fulfilling one's own destiny. The Jedi could step in to help promote peace and justice, but couldn't defy the natural cycles of life and death."

The adjacent mural depicted the rogue Jedi, now dressed in all black and holding a red lightsaber in hand. Bowing before him were rows of people.

"The rogue Jedi broke away from the order, starting the Order of the Sith, and proclaiming himself the First Sith. He and his followers began to subjugate countless worlds, using the Force to rule as deities, shaping the Galaxy as they saw fit.

"Decades of conquest created the Sith Empire, which turned its sights on the Republic. In a surprise attack, the First Sith and his band of warriors struck at the heart of the Republic. They lay waste to everything in their path, attempting to overthrow the Republic's leadership.

"The Prime Jedi sensed the fear and destruction from across the Galaxy. By the time and ship could travel there, it would've been too late. In an unprecedented move, the Prime Jedi projected himself across the Galaxy with the Force. His projection could interact with the physical world, but was invincible against all harm. The Prime Jedi stood alone against an army of Sith. In his last stand he gave the leaders of the Republic a chance to survive, preventing the Dark Side from taking full control of the Galaxy. The strain on the Prime Jedi's physical body was too great, resulting in him ascending into the Force. And so ended the first Jedi."

"With the Prime Jedi gone, the rest of the Order carried on his legacy. They defended the people of the Republic from the invasion of the Sith Empire. But the following peace was short-lived. The Sith rebuilt and returned, taking control of the Galaxy. And once again, the Jedi fought to free it.

"Eons of war continued between the Jedi and the Sith. In between them was the rest of the Galaxy, being torn apart as the Force tried to balance itself as it swung from Light to Dark in endless cycle. Ordinary beings, their lives torn apart, because a select few tried to assert their vision of perfection with complete disregard for the will of the Force.

"Over time, the Jedi became more and more corrupt and incompetent, zealous in their adherence to the light and fear of the dark. With no Sith to protect the Galaxy from, they begun to use their influence to achieve their own vision of how things should be. The Jedi and Sith had become mirror images: one in the light, one in the dark.

"At the height of their powers, the Jedi allowed Darth Sidious to rise, create the Empire and wipe them out. It was a Jedi Master who was responsible for the training and creation of Darth Vader."

"And a Jedi who saved him," Rey countered. "Yes, the most hated man in the galaxy. But you saw there was conflict inside him. You believed that he wasn't gone. That he could be turned."

"And I became a legend," Luke said. "But you don't know the whole story. Let me show you."

He held out his left hand, and Rey took it. Immediately her world became a flash of white, before morphing into a series of images and memories, in which she could visualize Luke's actions from an outside point of view. The old Jedi Master's voice narrated the events unfolding before her.

"After the Battle of Endor, the Rebels had won a major turning point, but the fight wasn't over. With the death of the Emperor they declared the formation of the New Republic."

 _A younger Luke, clad in tight-fitting black robes, stood amongst a crowd in a pristine white plaza. Next to him stood Han Solo and other important members of the Rebel Alliance. They smiled up at Leia, who along with Mon Mothma and Admiral Ackbar was presenting an official plaque proclaiming the official start of the New Republic as the Galaxy's legitimate government._

"We continued to fight the remnants of the Empire, pushing them back to the edge of the Galaxy. But the Emperor had a Contingency plan: burn down the old Empire to have a new, stronger version rise from the ashes. Dozens of worlds were devastated. Worlds with allegiance to both the Republic and the Empire."

 _The lush world of Naboo was completely enveloped by raging storms. Several satellites, emitting red beams, were causing this chaos. Citizens ran for cover in the regal-looking capital city as harsh winds and rain continued._

 _On a black city full of Imperial flags, harsh weather collapsed several buildings. Crowds were crushed by falling rubble._

"We finally achieved victory over the Empire at the Battle of Jakku. It was meant to be the Empire's final stand. All the Imperial forces that weren't destroyed retreated into the Unknown Regions of the Galaxy. Shortly after the battle, my nephew Ben Solo was born."

 _Hundreds of starships were engaged in combat above the rolling deserts of Jakku. Wounded Star Destroyers crashed into the sands below._

 _A formation of Imperial vessels narrowly escaped the attacks of the Republic fleet. They simultaneously jumped into hyperspace, disappearing from view._

 _Leia held the newly born infant in her arms. Han leaned over to examine his son, lightly touching the child's dark hair._

"Leia went back into the Senate, helping rebuild a democracy. Han had no interest in politics and entered into high-level speeder races. For myself, I traveled the Galaxy with Artoo, learning about the Jedi and the Force. My mission was to create a new Jedi Order, but I didn't know where to start. I visited ancient temples, gathered old Jedi relics, anything I could to prepare myself for the role of a Jedi Master."

 _Leia deliberated amongst a crowd in the ornate halls of a Senate Chamber. When she spoke, people listened. Even her opponents respected her._

 _Han cranked down the lever on his speeder, sending into full afterburner as he rounded the corner of the racetrack of a slum-like city. The crowds cheered as he passed another racer._

 _Luke stepped inside the opening of a massive stark-white temple. He descended a set of of wide steps, nearing a table full of relics. He dusted off a necklace chained to a red kyber crystal, cradling the artifact in his hand._

"For many years there was balance in the Force. All I did was gather knowledge and defend the innocent from harm. And then I saw Ben. My nephew, with that mighty Skywalker blood. And in my hubris, I thought I could train him, I could pass on my strengths."

 _Luke stood atop a cliff on Tatooine, holding a Jedi manuscript in his hand. The double suns were high up in the bright blue sky._

 _A crew of bandits pillaged the defenseless desert town. One raider held a woman at blasterpoint. Luke sped into action, slicing across the bandit's body with his green lightsaber._

 _Han and Leia stood next to Ben Solo, who was now sixteen. He stared across at his uncle, the legendary Jedi he got to finally meet after years of him wandering the Galaxy._

"Han was Han about it, but... Leia trusted me with her son. I took him, and a dozen students, and began a training temple. Half of the students worshipped him and his abilities, the others feared him. Either way, he felt alone amongst them. His only true connection was with me."

 _Ben held the Skywalker lightsaber in hand, its blue blade ignited. Around him were dozens of training remotes. One fired off a low-power shot, which Ben deflected easily. The others all began to fire at once, but Ben swiftly blocked every bolt coming his way._

 _A group of students looked upon Ben in envy, as the prodigy gracefully practiced complex lightsaber forms. Some of the other students stared on uneasily, whispering to each other about how Ben was frightening; a monster._

"By the time I realize I was no match for the darkness rising in him, it was too late. He was abusing his power, always lusting for more of it."

 _Ben closed his eyes, concentrating on lifting the craggy boulder in front of him. The rock effortlessly began to levitate. He clenched his fist, and cracks formed along the rock. Opening his eyes, Ben furrowed his brow in concentration. His eyes glinted with anger and frustration. He pulled his fist tighter. The boulder exploded into hundreds of stone fragments._

"I went to confront him. And he turned on me."

 _Luke walked into Ben's personal quarters. His nephew was on his knees, breathing heavily. He turned around, his eyes fiery like a rabid predator. His hand extended towards the ceiling of the hut._

" _Ben, no!" Luke shouted. The ceiling came down around him, burying him in a pile of splintered wood._

"He must have thought I was dead. When I came to, the temple was burning. He had vanished with a handful of my students. And slaughtered the rest."

 _Luke's mechanical hand burst through the pile of debris that lay on top of him. He uncovered himself, only to find his temple in flames. He fell to his knees. His face was twisted in pain. He placed his artificial hand on Artoo's domed hand, his only consolation. Everything else was gone._

"Leia blamed Snoke, but it was me. I thought that if I had been wiser in the ways of the Force and Jedi, none of this would have happened. I vowed to undertake a journey to learn the truths of the Jedi and the Force. I entrusted my closest followers and allies with the plans for my journey, but decided on going alone."

 _Luke hugged Leia, tears running down the woman's face. Luke couldn't summon himself to speak. He could only stand there and embrace her. Han was turned away from the twins, far away and staring off into the distance._

 _An old man in dark robes gazed at the holographic map floating in front of his eyes. The projection was coming from a small data drive, held within Luke's hand. The map switched off, and the drive was placed within the elderly man's hand._

 _Luke stood in front of an updated X-wing with an all-white paintjob. R2 sat in the droid socket behind the cockpit. He climbed into the fighter, taking one last look at Han and Leia, at the solemn look on their faces._

"I visited scores of worlds associated with ancient legends: Ilum, Tython, Rakata Prime, Kell, anywhere containing old secrets. Every time I found an answer about Jedi and the Force, it only led to more questions."

"I came here to Ahch-To, hoping to find the final answers I needed inside the First Jedi Temple. I explored the ruins of the island, and couldn't find the temple. I studied from the sacred texts, meditated over the sea and explored the history of the Jedi in the observatory. All for the reason of hoping to find the First Jedi Temple."

 _A white X-wing descended towards the island. It landed on the rocky coastline, and Luke Skywalker hopped out, wearing black Jedi robes. His hair was still blonde, with streaks of gray._

"But I never did. By then, I had learned all I needed to know about the mysteries of the Jedi and the Force. Everything I've told you in these lessons— It all came together for me. Finding a complete balance in the Force was impossible. The Prime Jedi was a myth. From Jedi came the Sith, and from that, war. The cycle of endless war that continues to this day, as the will of the Force shifts between the dark and the light."

White light flooded Rey's vision, before the real world blurred back into focus before her. She let go of Luke's hand.

The Jedi Master sighed deeply. "I realized by ending the Jedi, I could break the cycle. It was the only way left. I couldn't revive the Jedi Order. I couldn't bring balance to the Force. I failed. Because I was Luke Skywalker. Jedi Master. A legend."

"The galaxy may need a legend," Rey replied softly. "And I…I need someone to show me my place in all this."

A single tear welled up in the corner of Luke's eye. "I failed my former apprentice… I can't show you…"

"You didn't fail Kylo," Rey reassured him, determination in her voice. "Kylo failed you. I won't."

Luke looked up at Rey, the slightest smile on his face.


	4. Part 4

General Hux and Captain Peavy stood next to each on the bridge of the Mega Destroyer, watching the distant Resistance fleet. A hologram floated beside them, showing the cannon bolt impacts harmlessly bouncing off the ships' shields.

"The main cruiser's still keeping beyond range," Peavy reported. "But their medical frigate is out of fuel and its shields are down."

"The beginning of their end," Hux said smugly. "Destroy it."

The captain of the medical frigate sat in his control chair, observing the volley of incoming cannon shells heading his way. A small hologram of Admiral Holdo was projected in front of him.

"The last of our crew has been evacuated and is heading your way," he said. "It's been an honor, admiral."

Holdo watched as the hologram of the frigate's captain cut out. The medical ship cracked in half along its thin midsection. Holdo sighed and turned around to face the bridge crew.

"Admiral, fuel reserves at ninety-two hours," Connix stated.

"Maintain our current course," Holdo replied. "Steady on."

Poe watched in disbelief as the admiral refused to take any sort of action, even after one of their support ships had been destroyed.

"Finn, Rose, where are you guys?" he muttered anxiously. When the medical frigate went down, it signaled the First Order of their vulnerability.

Poe couldn't sit and watch the Resistance die. He had to act again. Anything was better than the current hopeless pursuit they found themselves stuck in.

He approached Tallie. "We go back out again tonight."

Finn, Rose and BB-8 ascended the grand stairway that led into the casino. Ornate lanterns were mounted along the way, casting everything in a soft golden light. Hundreds of game tables were laid out inside the domed building. Intricate designs lined the walls, emitting white light. A wide variety of unique-looking humans and aliens, all in classy dark coats, roamed around gambling and socializing.

"We'll split up," Finn said. "I'll take BB-8. Tell me over the comlink if you find Lando."

Rose nodded, and the two parted, making their way through the crowded casino.

Finn examined the patrons walking by, trying to spot the suave-looking businessman. His eyes landed on a nearby open gambling machine with an open coin case lying open on top.

Making sure no one was looking, he grabbed a handful of coins from the case. He placed several coins on a set of spinning dials, hoping to get the coins to all line up. After his first attempt failed, he grabbed another handful of coins to try again.

The dials began to slow to a stop, the coins placed on them beginning to align. Two of them were in proper placement, while the other dial was slowly coming to a stop. It clicked in place, and a small bell sounded. Coins flowed from the machine into a tray.

Finn reached into his pocket, pulling out a small pouch and shoving the coins inside. He had gathered the majority of them before a hand grabbed his shoulder and pulled him away.

He turned around, coming face-to-face with Rose.

"What are you doing?" she questioned accusingly.

"I, uh…I—"

Rose shook her head. "Forget it. I found Lando. Let's go."

Finn and BB-8 followed Rose through the crowd until they came upon a large silver game table. At the head of the table was a man dressed in a silver cloak with blue accents. The man exuded confidence and class. He was clearly the center of attention at his table.

Finn worked his way through the crowd until he stood beside Lando at the table. He tapped Lando on the shoulder to get his attention.

"Well aren't you underdressed for this occasion," Lando said, examining Finn's Resistance outfit.

Unsure of how to respond, Finn decided to move on to more urgent matters. "You're Lando Calrissian, right?"

"Never thought you would have guessed," Lando said sarcastically before turning back to his game table.

"Chairman Overseer Calrissian, this is urgent," Finn whispered harshly.

"Master Overseer Calrissian," Lando corrected. "But please, call me Lando."

"Look Lando, please, just give me a minute. It's important. I'm here from the Resistance. General Leia needs your help."

Lando's eyes lit up at the mention of that name. He dropped the dice in his hands and turned away from the game table. "Follow me. Let's take this somewhere private."

Finn motioned for Rose to come along, and she followed them into Lando's personal quarters, BB-8 rolling along behind her.

Lando sat down in a padded chair, but Finn and Rose remained standing.

"I'm Finn, and this is Rose," Finn said. "We're part of the Resistance."

"I can't believe I'm meeting Lando," Rose said in awe. "You destroyed the Death Star II in the Battle of Endor! It was the turning point of the war!"

Finn shook his head in annoyance. "Anyway, right now our fleet is being chased by the First Order. We tried to jump to lightspeed to escape but they just followed us. Their fighters attacked our cruiser and injured Leia. Someone close to her said that you would be willing to help."

"I don't know how much I can do about your situation here," Lando said honestly. "My security force isn't trained to fight in a war with the First Order. I don't want to compromise my neutrality. Dragging the war to Canto Bight would destroy all the wealth here."

"Wealth?" Rose questioned, disgust in her voice. "Why do you care so much about wealth when people are being _killed_ by the First Order!"

"I've fought my war," Lando countered. "Canto Bight is my life's work. I fought the Empire so I could run things the way I choose, to be prosperous and peaceful. I'm not throwing that away."

"If you have the means to fight back, you should," Rose said.

Finn placed a hand on her shoulder, signaling for her to calm down. He then turned to Lando. "We're not to get you to join the war. You don't have to stop being neutral. We just want you to point us towards some allies in the Republic than can help."

"Anyone in the Republic that would have put up a fight already left this world to go back and defend their own from the First Order. The only people from the Republic still here are those who don't have an army or chose not to fight."

"Are there any other—"

"Could you find us a slicer?" Rose interjected, cutting Finn off. "You have to know a slicer, or least know someone else who knows of one. A talented slicer. One that can break high level encryption."

"And why would you need a slicer?" Lando inquired.

"To bypass the shields of Snoke's Mega Destroyer and sneak on board," Rose said, determination in her voice.

Lando raised an eyebrow at the audacious claim. "Breaking into the flagship of the First Order, huh? That's quite the tale." He chuckled to himself before becoming serious again. "I know of someone. He's worked for me a few times. He goes by the title of 'Don't Join' but most people call him DJ. I can't have that kind of man coming near my establishment, but you can find him in the main district in an old warehouse."

Lando reached into a drawer nearby, pulling out a small datapad. He clicked it a few times, then handed it to Rose.

"This datapad has DJ's location," he explained. "I wish the best of luck to you. And Leia."

Finn nodded. "Thank you."

The door to Lando's quarters burst open and a security officer ran in. He approached his boss and began to speak. "Sir, we've detected multiple large ships emerging from hyperspace."

Lando furrowed his brow in concern and stepped out onto his balcony. Finn and Rose followed suit. A thundering boom roared above them as multiple First Order destroyers dropped out of hyperspace.

People on the streets of Canto Bight looked to the sky in fear.

"Sir, we have an incoming transmission for you," a security officer told Lando.

The former Rebellion general nodded and went back inside his quarters, bringing up a hologram on a projector table. The chrome-encased form of Captain Phasma appeared before him.

"Lando Calrissian, this is Captain Phasma of the First Order. I hereby declare the occupation of this city. The greed and vanity of Canto Bight is a blight upon the Galaxy. It defies the values of order and uniformity. We offer you the chance to surrender, if you are wise enough to take it."

Lando continued to stand confidently, unfazed by Phasma's threat. "This place is meant to a neutral haven for both the New Republic and the First Order. You are in direct violation of our right to exist as we see fit."

"Your rights were as part of the Republic. The Republic is gone. Its corruption has ceased to exist," Phasma responded.

"I'm not a violent man, Captain Phasma, but I will fight to protect the product of my life's work just as any man would," Lando said.

"Consider my offer to surrender and protect your life's work."

"I don't believe that for a second," Lando seethed. "You came here to take anything valuable, use it to build up the First Order and then leave. I've dealt with your kind before."

"A pity then that you couldn't consider the easy way out. Maybe you'll reconsider as my troops land in your city." Phasma's hologram fizzled out.

Lando turned to Finn and Rose. "Go to the main district. Fight the slicer. I'll have my security officers try to hold the city."

"We'll find him, Lando," Finn assured him. "And we'll bring the pain back to the First Order."

Lando gave a two-fingered salute to Finn and Rose as they ran out of his quarters. The two continued to run through the panicking crowd, ending up at the casino's back door. They emerged into a garden, dodging past exotic flora and entering a squat brown building.

Finn and Rose stopped to catch their breath. Rose looked to her right, a grin appearing on her face.

"Fathiers," she muttered. She began to walk away from Finn.

"A what?" Finn asked.

"Fathiers," she answered again. She pointed towards a series of large brown equine creatures held inside a row of stables. Each had a short snout and long, floppy ears.

Rose started towards the stable, grabbing a saddle from a rack next to her. She opened the stable door and held her hand out, allowing the fathier to cautiously sniff it. She then stepped around its neck and threw the saddle over its back.

"No, we are not doing this," Finn objected, slowly stepping back.

"Unless you can think of a faster way to get the slicer, then yes, we are." Rose stepped into a stirrup and mounted the fathier.

"If you don't come I'll leave without you," she threatened. Finn reluctantly swung his legs up over the fathier's back, settling down behind Rose.

She gave a sharp whistle and the fathier bolted forward. Finn had to grip tightly around Rose's waist to not be thrown off the quickly-moving creature. BB-8 rolled along behind, trying desperately to keep up with Finn and Rose.

The fathier galloped across the garden, jumping over streams and bridges. It burst through the other side, coming upon a wide cobblestone street.

They bounded down the street, passing brightly lit shops and crowds of fleeing citizens. Finn winced as the fathier stepped on fancy landspeeders, denting them up beyond repair.

"Hyah!" Rose shouted, trying to get the fathier to go faster.

Finn's eye grew wide in fear. "Stop enjoying this! Stop enjoying this!"

Finn looked up into the sky, watching as First Order landing craft made their descent into the city. As they touched down, their ramps opened, stormtroopers streaming out. A few troopers spotted the sprinting fathier and pointed their blasters in its direction.

"Bail!" Finn shouted. He grabbed Rose's shoulder and threw them both off the fathier as blaster bolts whizzed by. They impacting the stone ground, Finn absorbing most of the blow.

The fathier continued on, but was struck in the chest by a series of blaster bolts. It roared in pain before flopping to the ground.

Rose stared on in sadness, but Finn took the initiative to drag her away by the collar.

"Come on! We need to get some cover!" he exclaimed, pulling her into one of the shops lining the road. BB-8 rolled in just as the automatic door sealed shut.

On the main street, frightened civilians continued to flee. Stormtroopers occasionally took aim at any that came too close, gunning them down. Canto Bight security officers responded on the scene, drawing their blaster pistols and engaging the stormtroopers.

Inside the shop, Finn looked out a window at the fight going on the street. "Are there any back doors to this place?"

Rose looked around the other end of the shop. "No. We have one way in our out."

Finn drew a blaster pistol he'd been concealing in his jacket. "Then follow me."

He ran out the automatic door, Rose and BB-8 close behind. In front of him, two security officers were hit by blaster bolts, dropping to the ground. Finn sighted in the nearby stormtrooper and blasted him.

He ran behind a parked navy blue landspeeder, ducking behind it as blaster bolts impacted the metal sides. He then peeked up from behind the vehicle, firing the blaster pistol in one hand. The two stormtroopers firing at him dropped to the ground.

"Rose, BB-8, come on!" he shouted, motioning for them to move up to him. They ran to him, and the group took off towards an alleyway.

Two stormtroopers stood in the alleyway, facing away from the Resistance members. The troopers' blasters were firing, gunning down civilians passing by.

Finn shot one of the troopers in the side of the helmet, and the other turned around to return fire. Finn leaped behind a power box attached to the alley wall, pulling Rose with him. Red blaster bolts whizzed by.

Finn peered around the power box, firing his blaster pistol. The blue bolt impacted the stormtrooper squarely in the chest.

"Let's get out the alley," Finn said, breaking into a sprint. The group emerged on the other side of the alleyway, spotting an old rusted gray building.

"It's the warehouse," Rose said, pointing at it. She, Finn and BB-8 ran down the road to the front door. They threw it open and entered building.

For a few seconds, all was dark. Then the lights began to turn on one by one. At the end of the warehouse stood another door. Finn, Rose and BB-8 approached it with caution.

Finn knocked, and the face of a poorly-maintained droid appeared through the open slit.

"Why are you here," the droid said bluntly.

"Lando sent us. We're here to meet with this DJ guy," Finn answered.

The droid paused for a few seconds, making strange whirring noises. "Let me confirm with my master."

The slit on the door closed for a minute. The group waited impatiently, hearing the faint sound of blaster fire in the distance. Finally, the door creaked open.

Inside, a man sat a desk of elaborate computer monitors, facing away from Finn and Rose. The man then turned around.

He was dressed in dark, worn-down clothing, and a brimless cap with the words "DON'T JOIN" emblazoned on it. His face was full of unkempt stubble and his hair was greasy.

"I hear from Big Man Lando you have a j-j-job for me," DJ said, a shady grin on his face.

Finn stepped forward. "I can explain it all later, but basically we need someone that can hack the shields of Snoke's main ship so we can get aboard and disable a tracker. Can you do that?"

DJ grinned mischievously. "Me and the First Order codeage go way back. I can do it. If the p-price is right, I could break you into old man S-S-Snoke's boudoir."

"The Resistance will pay you if you complete the job," Finn replied. "Now make your decision quickly because the First Order isn't far behind."

"Catoohgah," DJ swore, rubbing his chin. "I have nothing to lose. I'll d-d-do it."

"Finn, time to go!" Rose warned, the sound of blaster fire drawing closer.

"Alright, let's move, slicer," Finn said, pulling his pistol from his jacket and running towards the exit. DJ grabbed a junky-looking blaster rifle from under his desk and followed the group out.

The group snuck through the streets and alleyways of Canto Bight, avoiding stormtrooper patrols attempting to lock down the city. They ducked down behind a squat wall, at a vantage point overlooking most of the city and the beach.

"The beach is crawling with stormtroopers," Finn observed. "We won't make it back to our ship in one piece."

"I h-have a ship," DJ offered. "Just pay a b-bit extra."

"Fine," Finn agreed. "Take us there."

DJ climbed over the stone wall, running down the zigzagging cobbled streets. Finn, Rose and BB-8 attempted to keep up, wary of being spotted by First Order troops.

They arrived outside a domed hangar atop a cliff. Several stormtroopers stood outside the main entrance. Finn, Rose, DJ and BB-8 took cover behind a stack of storage boxes to avoid being spotted.

"So here's the plan," Finn started, addressing the group. "I'll distract the troopers. DJ and BB-8, get the ship ready to go. Rose, open up the main hangar door. "

The group nodded and snuck towards the hangar. Finn took aim at one of the troopers, a far shot for a blaster pistol. He missed.

The stormtroopers turned towards the source of the blaster shot, raising their own blasters to fire back. Finn rapidly pulled the trigger, trying more to occupy the stormtroopers' attention than hit them.

One of the First Order troopers still managed to spot Rose, DJ and BB-8 heading towards the side door of the hangar.

"Close off the hangar entry," he radioed to another stormtrooper, who hit a button on a control panel. The entry door began to close downwards.

BB-8 saw this and rolled ahead, coming up under the door. He deployed a strong extendable pole, extending it under the door. The bottom of the door caught on the pole, propped up a few feet above the ground.

DJ and Rose ran towards the door. DJ fired his blaster rifle as he ran, taking down a few stormtroopers.

Rose reached the entry door first, and crawled her way underneath. DJ arrived a few seconds later, picking off one more stomtrooper before slipping under the door into the hangar.

Seeing his group make it safely inside, Finn sprinted towards the hangar, firing his blaster pistol as he ran. Blaster bolts impacted all around him. One his shots managed to hit a stomtrooper, who stumbled to the ground.

Rose ran around the hangar until she spotted the main control panel. She flipped a few switches, opening the main hangar door that looked out over the cliff.

BB-8 squeaked nervously as the stormtroopers began to focus fire on him. A blaster bolt whizzed by, leaving a charred mark on the door.

Finn took out the trooper from behind and ran down the hallway towards the entry door, sliding head-first underneath. BB-8 quickly retracted his arm and rolled under the door.

Rose and Finn jogged up the ramp of a flat-shaped silver ship, DJ waving them aboard. They all assembled in the cockpit, strapping themselves into the sleek, luxurious seats.

"T-time to leave," DJ muttered, punching forward the throttle. The ship sped out of the hangar, disappearing into the dark blue skies of Canto Bight.

A fleet of battered Resistance fighters and bombers burst through the atmosphere of a lush planet. Below them stood a large, pristine white city, filled with sleek spires and domes.

Poe worked the X-wing's joystick as he led the pack of Resistance pilots to their target. "The First Order recently occupied this world. They're putting on a military parade in that city to show their dominance. Let's prove 'em wrong."

"Agreed, Black Leader," Tallie radioed in.

The squadron of ships dipped low over the city, inbound for the military parade. A procession of tanks, AT-ST scout walkers, missile launchers and stormtroopers filled the main boulevard.

"Poe, we're picking up new signals. TIE fighters coming in on our six," Tallie warned.

"They were ready for us!" Poe remarked, switching his wings into attack position. "Fighters, turn around and prepare to hold off those hostiles. Bombers, continue as planned and target that parade."

Poe and the other Resistance fighters swung around, facing the incoming squad of TIEs. Poe twisted through the fray of battling ships, thumbing the trigger of his joystick and leaving destroyed First Order fighters in his wake.

Tallie flew next to her flight leader, maneuvering her agile A-wing into position behind a TIE fighter. She got a positive reading from her targeting computer and blasted the ship from the sky.

The bombers were currently over the parade, opening their bay doors. They dropped their ordnance in unison, pulverizing the First Order military equipment and troops lining the streets.

With their target destroyed, the bombers began to retreat. As they reached the limits of the city, eight TIE fighters swooped in, guns blazing. The bombers were ripped apart by dozens of green blaster bolts.

"We've lost our bombers," Poe said. He banked hard, shredding another TIE fighter with his wing-mounted cannons. All around him, his wingmen were putting up a desperate fight, but fell one by one to the superior enemy force.

"Black Leader, I've got two on my six," Tallie cried, hoping for assistance.

"Hang on, I'm tied down here but I'll be there," Poe said, green blaster bolts zipping past his cockpit. A pack of swooping TIE fighters continued to descend on him, lashing out with their main cannons.

Poe threw the joystick to the right, banking his X-wing into a steep turn. He came around to face a pair of TIE fighters, blasting them from the sky with his wing-mounted guns.

He spotted Tallie ahead, maneuvering her A-wing frantically as five TIE fighters bore down on her. She evaded the initial laser blasts in her small interceptor, but one of the bolts struck her starboard tail fin.

"Poe, I'm hit! Hurry!" She urged, fear rising in her voice. More green bolts flew by, coming dangerously close to her ship.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Poe accelerated his X-wing to the max, dodging in out of TIE fighters as he attempted to reach Tallie.

"There's too many on my tail! I can't keep this up!" She banked to the left, dodging as another TIE fighter flew right past her head-on.

"I'm almost there! Just a few seconds!" Poe shouted. He pressed his ship to go faster, but his thrusters were at their limit.

He watched with horror as more TIE fighters overwhelmed Tallie, firing away. Her A-wing was torn apart by the incoming hail of blaster bolts. Her screams rang out over the radio, ceasing once her ship disappeared into a violent fireball.

Poe's mouth hung slightly open. His gaze was distant. He only had a few seconds to grieve before he was back in the action, desperately trying to escape the battle scene.

He looked around, but couldn't see any of his squadron. "All wings, please report in," he begged, hoping for a voice to respond over the radio. Only static followed.

"All wings, report!"

More static.

"Dammit!" Poe banked his ship around, accelerating into the atmosphere. No other ships joined him as he retreated into hyperspace.

Poe sat hunched over on a bench in the hangar, his head bowed towards the ground. Holdo stood above him, clearly angered and disappointed by the pilot's actions.

"So let's just get this straight," the Admiral began, "you not only went behind my back to conduct unauthorized missions, but got a quarter of our remaining pilots killed in the process?!"

Poe nodded slowly, too ashamed to look up at her.

"Please, explaining your reasoning behind that," she snapped, crossing her arms over her chest.

Poe kept his head down. "I was trying to draw the First Order's attention away from our fleet. I thought… that maybe… if we started attacking important targets far from here, they'd divert their fleet away from here. Send it to others places because they'd fear us and our future attacks."

"We can't beat the First Order through fear," Holdo said. "They outclass us in that game. They don't care about what the people they rule over think of them. Their subjects obey or they beat them down. You think the First Order cares about a few small facilities throughout the Galaxy? If they lose one they just enslave another world and build a new one. They have the means and resources to do this. Do you think those targets were worth the cost you paid?"

Poe looked up this time, anger rising inside him over the mention of his fallen squad. "I want them all alive as much as you do, but they all volunteered for that mission!"

"I see that people follow you, Poe. And that's what's dangerous about you. You become responsible for their lives, not just your own. It's a burden any leader has to carry. You have to put strategy over impulse. Make every sacrifice worth it."

"What are you gonna do now, huh?" Poe questioned, looking at her with a dull stare. "Throw me in the brig?"

"No," Holdo replied calmly. "Like you said, those pilots volunteered. Your punishment is the burden your carry, knowing that you lost all the people under your command on that mission."

Poe looked away, unwilling to meet her gaze. "Am I dismissed?" he mumbled.

"Dismissed," she replied quickly, turning away and allowing Poe to leave the hangar.

Night had fallen over the island on Ahch-To. Luke journeyed up to the meditation rock, overlooking the choppy seas. He placed his hands on the cold stone and closed his eyes.

Leia, still unconscious in a medical bed, felt a stirring presence inside her. One she knew was distant, but felt familiar and warm.

Her lips moved slightly. "Luke…"

The old Jedi Master's eyes shot open. "Leia!" He sensed her weakness, how she was clinging on to life. Luke stared out across the dark oceans, the moonlight reflecting on his somber face.


	5. Part 5

Rey hiked up the hill in the dark, intending to return to her hut. As she neared the old Jedi village, she felt a familiar presence materialize in front of her: Kylo Ren.

"I'd rather not do this now," Rey said, looking away.

"Yeah, me, too," she heard him say, but she till refused to look at him. As much as she wanted to keep turned away, she was drawn to him, curious.

"Why did you hate your father?" she asked, finally acknowledging him. His muscular form appeared shirtless before her.

"Do you have something, a cowl or something you could put on?" she asked, flustered by the sight.

Kylo ignored her request, continuing to face her.

Rey sighed before she refocused herself. "Why did you hate your father? Give me an honest answer. You had a father who loved you, he gave a damn about you."

Kylo's face remained stoic, but his dark eyes were filled with conflicting emotions. "I didn't hate him."

"Then why?" Rey demanded.

"Why what?"

Rey choked up, unable to find an answer.

"Why what?" Kylo pressed. "Say it."

"Why did you... Why did you kill him?" She broke into tears, wiping her eyes on her arm. "I don't understand."

Kylo Ren knew he had the upper hand in this conversation. "No, you don't. Your parents threw you away like garbage."

"They didn't!"

"They did," Kylo confirmed, knowing the answer by observing Rey's face. "But you can't stop needing them. It's your greatest weakness. Looking for them everywhere, in Han Solo, now in Skywalker."

He sighed before addressing her once. "Did he tell you what happened that night?"

"Yes."

"No," Kylo growled. "He had sensed my power, as he senses yours."

Suddenly, Rey entered Kylo's memories. _A teenage Ben Solo was on his knees on his quarters, staring at the wall in front of him. The door flap was cast aside. Luke Skywalker stepped into the hut._

" And he feared it," Kylo finished.

 _Luke extended his mechanical hand, freezing Kylo in place. Kylo's eyes moved back and forth rapidly, frightened at what his master had done. He clenched his teeth, breaking free of the invisible grip detaining his body. Regaining all mobility, he reached up, collapsing the roof on top of them._

Rey exited the memories. "Liar," she spat, denying what Kylo had told her.

Kylo took a step forward, making sure to gain eye contact with Rey. "Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to. That's the only way to become what you were meant to be."

The form of Kylo Ren had disappeared. She dropped to the ground, hugging her knees. Even back on Jakku, she had never felt so alone. Her friends were in trouble across the Galaxy, and Luke had given up on the Jedi Order.

Rey caught sight of a faint blue light in the corner of her eye. She whipped her head around, baffled at what she saw. In front of her was a shimmering figure dressed in black Jedi robes. His wavy hair reached to the base of his neck, and a thin scar sat next to his right eye.

Rey slowly stood up, amazed at what she was witnessing. "Who…are you?"

The man simply smiled at her. "My name is Anakin Skywalker."

Rey's eyes grew wide in amazing. "You're Luke's father…" she muttered.

Anakin nodded. "And you, an awakening in the Force. Naturally gifted and powerful. Just as I once was."

"I… I don't understand… my power. I felt it awake," Rey said.

"The will of the Force is a mystery. It acts upon the physical world in ways we can't understand. We are as much in control of the Force as the Force is in control of us."

"I need someone to teach me, to show me," Rey begged. "Luke won't. He wants to end the Jedi Order. Is there anything you could do to help him, to show him that the Galaxy still needs the Jedi?"

The ghostly form of Anakin paced along the rocky ground. "I've tried to reach him, but he closed himself off his to me, and to all his other masters. Part of me understands his sentiments about the Jedi. I was once a Jedi Knight before the rise of the Empire.

"The Jedi had grown to fear the Dark Side above all else. They knew uncontrolled emotions were a quick path to the dark. So they tried to suppress all emotion in their students. But they didn't teach us to understand our emotions, to control them. The Jedi didn't understand the Dark Side, they only avoided it. So when the Sith returned, the Jedi were unprepared. Nearly the entire Order was hunted down and destroyed.

"During these times I had become a shadow of my former self. And my son… he redeemed me. He broke from the previous ways of the Jedi, and his compassion saved me. A sense of compassion that would have been suppressed in the days when I was a Jedi."

Rey continued to stare at Anakin, trying to process everything she'd been told. "But… Luke succeeded! And he still won't even remember his own success!"

"My son had acted like the true Jedi once did. He tried to pass those ways onto a new Jedi Order. And his failure broke his spirit."

"Haven't you tried to reach out to Kylo?" Rey questioned. "He worships you."

"He worships Darth Vader, who died on the second Death Star when I decided to save my son from the Emperor."

"You can still convince him! Tell him your true story," Rey urged.

"I've tried to reach Ben, but he's gone too far into the dark for me to reach him. To become part of the spiritual world of the Force is a skill of the light side. Those who delve deep into the dark are bound to the physical world. An apparition like me can't appear before them."

"Then… why did you reach out to me?"

"I can't appear to Luke or Ben Solo. You're the only hope at this point," Anakin stated.

"But… what can I do? I just… I don't know…"

"Search your feelings. Answers will follow," he said encouragingly. He gave Rey a slight smile before disappearing.

Rey sighed, looking at the ground below her. Her mind was dominated by uncertainty. The pressure was overbearing. She tried her best to close her eyes and block those feelings.

"The island… underneath the island… I sensed it," she whispered to herself. She opened her eyes and walked back to the Jedi village.

She noticed a small form in the distance, and examined it closely. It was Luke, silently staring out over the oceans of Ahch-To.

Rey took advantage of this and entered his hut, searching through his possessions. Finally, she found what she wanted: a silver compass with blue crystals embedded in it.

As she held the compass in her palm, the crystals began to glow. The compass opened, shining beams of soft blue light around the darkened hut. The beams died out, and the center jewel lit up, along with several around it. The light was guiding her way.

She walked wherever the compass pointed, hiking over rocks until she reached the coastline. The lights around the edges ceased to glow, only the center jewel did. Before her was a hole in the rocks, leading down into a dark cave. She could hear the faint sound of waves splashing inside.

Rey tugged off her boots, feeling the cold rock against her bare feet. She then removed her vest, piling it next to her boots. Finally, she placed the compass down next to her discarded clothing.

Taking a deep breath, she dove down inside the hole. Immediately, she felt the ice cold water biting her bare skin. Not a proficient swimmer, Rey kicked her legs and flailed her arms, managing to grasp hold of a rock. She pulled herself towards it, dragging her body ashore.

She remained bent over on her hands and knees, gasping for air. Her hair had fallen out of its three buns and was draped over her shoulders.

After catching her breath, she got to her feet. The cave ceiling above her was carved in a dome-like shape. Light blue crystals were embedded in the rock, emitting a soft glow that lit up the cave.

A circular of exotic trees was planted around the edges of the cave, and an open pyramid shrine stood in the middle. Crumbling pillars held up a variety of unique looking structures.

Rey slowly began to walk towards the shrine, observing her surroundings. The place had a strange familiarity to it. The shrine was drawing her in. Beckoning for her to reach out and touch it.

Rey held up a hand, pressing her palm against a large blue crystal inside the pyramid. It began to glow, turning from blue to white.

Rey's world disappeared in a bright flash. When her sight returned, she found herself in a white room resembling some sort of dojo. Mantras written in ancient, undecipherable languages were written across the walls.

At the center of the room sat a pale man with dark hair and light grey eyes. He wore white robes, accompanied by a black sash around his waist, with black pants and boots. Rey couldn't even tell if he was human or not due to his unusual appearance.

"You come with questions, young one?" the man said surely. Rey nodded.

The man waved his hand, signaling for her to come over. Rey looked down, embarrassed as water dripped off her onto the ground and her dirt-stained feet left a trail on the pure white floor. The man seemed not to care, only focused on the girl walking towards him.

"Where am I?" Rey asked, uncertainty in her voice.

"You are here, in this moment. Time and space don't matter," the man answered calmly. Rey could only respond with a look of confusion.

"Please, sit," the man said.

Rey dropped to the ground, pulling her legs into a cross-legged position. "Who… who are you?"

"I lived here, long ago. This is my temple. The first temple of the Jedi Order."

"You…you're the Prime Jedi!" Rey realized.

"One of the names I was known as, yes. Now, what guidance do you seek?"

"My master's given up on me, on the Jedi, on the Galaxy," Rey ranted, venting her frustration. "We need him to come back! He won't listen."

"Calm, child," the Prime Jedi instructed. "Such passion to help those in need is admirable, but can be dangerous if taken too far. Before you act, you must think clearly."

"I don't have time to think!" Rey snapped. "My friends are counting on me to bring back my master. I wish we could all have the luxury of thinking clearly, but my friends are in real trouble right now!"

The Prime Jedi remained unfazed by her angry outburst. "And that is the struggle we all face: whether to give in to emotion or logic. The truth is, life cannot exist without either. The struggle is finding our balance."

"My master, he always talked about balance. It's why he thinks he can't help. He couldn't bring the balance he wanted. How did you reach a balance in the Force so easily when he failed?"

"Your mistake is thinking the path to enlightenment was easy for me," the Prime Jedi responded. "One cannot reach a balance in the Force without many failures. And with each new failure comes a refinement of Jedi sight. One must continue to face many trials and challenges before they can achieve a balance in the Force. They must learn to truly embrace the Force in its entirety. One cannot just be told this. They must find it within themselves."

Rey stared at the Prime Jedi, a new sense of hope restored inside her. She had the answers for Luke. She could convince him to join the fight. Before she knew it, she was back inside the cave with the feeling of the blue gem underneath her hand.

Rey sat by a fire inside her hut, attempting to dry herself off. She looked down at the floor in front of her, processing what she had heard, and how to tell it all to Luke.

She felt a shadowy but comforting presence appear on the other side of the fire pit. Instead of confronting him, she continued to stare at the floor.

Kylo observed her, sensing the confusion inside her and the immense burden resting on her shoulders. He quietly spoke up. "Rey…"

Rey's head snapped up to look at Kylo. "Ben."

Kylo was about to correct her on calling him his former name, but decided against it. This was the first time she had used that name instead of "Kylo." Something about her had clearly changed.

"What happened to you?" Kylo asked, genuine concern in his voice.

Rey furrowed her brow. "Why do you care?"

Kylo hesitated to answer, but finally let the truth slip. "Because I have no one. But you, you're different. You listened to me."

Rey was shocked by what she heard. "I…I can understand that. Right now, actually. I have no one to turn to. Not even Luke."

"Luke won't help you," Kylo said. "He's only focused on his goals. Not the people around him."

Rey slowly nodded, a few tears falling down her face. "I know. And it hurts. He's afraid of me, like he was afraid of you."

"People always wish to have immense power," Kylo mused. "They just don't understand the burden and isolation that comes with that power."

Tears continued to flow down Rey's face. "I came all this way for nothing. I thought I'd find answers here. I was wrong. I've never felt so alone."

Kylo sighed deeply, pain in his eyes. "You're not alone."

Rey perked her head up, gazing sadly at Kylo. "Neither are you," she said softly. She slowly raised her hand, extending it towards the mirage of Kylo sitting in front of her.

Kylo saw what she was doing and slipped off his glove. He reached out with his hand. The air was filled with tension and uncertainty. Time seemed to slow as his hand moved towards hers.

Rey placed her hand into his— and felt his cold skin over the warmth of the fire pit. She gasped, feeling Kylo's physical presence in front of her. This was impossible. But he was clearly there.

Kylo stared back at her with the same expression of amazement and disbelief. "Rey?"

"It isn't too late," she replied softly.

"Stop!" Luke Skywalker stood at the door of the hut, watching Rey and Kylo sitting across from each other, hands touching.

He extended his open hand, sending the individuals bricks of the hut flying as it turned into a pile of rubble, leaving he and Rey exposed to the pouring rain. Kylo's form had disappeared.

"Is it true?" Rey shouted, anger filling her voice. "Did you turn against him?"

"Leave this island now!" Luke turned around and stormed away, fed up with the girl.

"Stop. Stop!" she commanded, but Luke ignored her and kept walking.

Rey's temper got the best of her. She jumped forward, striking Luke across the back with her staff.

The Jedi Master stumbled forward but retained his balance. He slowly turned around, finding the end of Rey's staff hovering in front of his face.

"Did you do it?" Rey questioned. "Did you create Kylo Ren?"

Luke remained silent, his expression stone cold. He reached his hand out the side, pulling a metal rod towards him with the Force. It flew into his hand, and he struck it against Rey's staff.

Rey grunted in surprise as Luke began to fight back. She slashed at him, but he easily sidestepped the attack. She swung the staff back up at his head, but he leaned back, avoiding the blow.

Rey stepped back, trying to find a weakness in Luke's form. She probed his defenses with a few quick strikes, each blocked by his metal rod. She then lunged at Luke, bring the staff down towards his head.

He deflected the strike and stepped to the side, managing to smack Rey across the left side of her abdomen.

She shrieked in pain, channeling her anger as she continued to strike at Luke with increasing fury. He stepped backwards, deftly blocking each of Rey's attacks.

Rey continued to advance, pummeling Luke's thin rod. Her next strike missed, and Luke took the opportunity to reach out and grab the staff. He yanked it out of her grip and cast it aside.

She reached towards her satchel, calling the lightsaber towards her with the Force. As soon as it snapped into her grip, she ignited it.

Startled by Rey's threatening actions, Luke fell backwards but caught himself with the Force. He gently lowered himself to rest on the ground.

"Tell me the truth," Rey ordered, holding the lightsaber blade towards him. "Did you create Kylo Ren."

Luke slowly stood up, Rey still holding the tip of blue energy blade inches from him. He offered out his hand.

Rey deactivated the lightsaber and slowly reached out to grab Luke's hand. As soon as she made contact, images flashed before her. Luke's voice pierced through the veil.

"When I started training my students, I wanted them to learn of balance in the Force. The way of the true Jedi before they strayed from this ideal and fell to the Empire."

 _Luke and a dozen other teenage students sat cross-legged on a grassy plain, meditating. A domed temple could be seen in the distance. Each individual student focused on the spiritual balance inside them._

"Ben Solo was a prodigy. I wanted him to spearhead my vision of the new Jedi Order. He was the first of my students to become powerful with the Light."

 _Ben faced down a training remote, unarmed. The remote spat a few low-power bolts towards him. He extended is hand, palm open, freezing the bolts in mid-air._

"So I worked tirelessly with Ben to have him reach out to the Dark and find balance. I wasn't concerned with the toll it was taking on him, only with having him complete my vision. And I was left with shame, and consequences."

 _Ben was hovering above the ground in a state of meditation, dozens of rocks floating around him. His eyes were shut tightly in concentration. Luke stood behind him, pushing him to achieve more._

 _One night, Ben sat on his knees inside his quarters. He was breathing heavily, his body shaking. His eyes resembled those of a wild animal._

 _Luke walked into the room, immediately sensing the storm of emotions inside Ben. Most of all, he sensed raw anger and rage. Ben whirled around to face his master, his eyes filled with fiery hatred._

 _In a moment of instinct, Luke opened his mechanical hand towards Ben. The prodigy was locked in place, the Force keeping him immobile. His frightened face held a look of betrayal._

 _Luke stared at his metallic hand, shocked by what he had done. He looked back up at Ben, who was resisting the freezing effect._

 _Ben broke free. Immediately, he reached towards the ceiling, bringing it down on top of Luke. The Jedi was too overcome with shame to react in time, just barely shielding himself enough to survive._

 _Ben stepped away from the rubble and ignited his blue lightsaber, heading towards the temple. He entered through the main arch, coming upon the rest of Luke's students standing around a wooden dojo, practicing various techniques._

 _The students all stopped what they were doing and turned to face Ben, who was standing in the training room entrance with his blue saber ignited._

 _Using the Force, Ben collected streams of fire from the torches that lined the room, hurling the ball of flame into the wooden walls. The students stood wide-eyed in fear as they watched the most talented of them all cut them off from the exit, ready for a fight._

"Even when I was unconscious, I could sense what was happening, almost as clear as if I were there myself. When I came to, I knew what had to be done."

 _Outside, the pile of wooden debris began to shake. A mechanical hand shot up from the mess of splintered boards, following by the full form of a battered Luke Skywalker. R2 rolled up next to him, making sure he was all right. Luke rested his metal hand on R2's s head as a gesture of reassurance. He then hobbled towards the temple entrance, as fast as his bruised body would allow._

 _Inside the burning main temple, some of the students who had worshipped Ben's power walked over next to him, intent on showing their loyalty. The remaining students, who either hated or feared him, ignited their lightsabers in defiance._

 _Ben charged forward, saber raised above his head. The students loyal to him drew their weapons and followed suit. The students against Ben stood their ground, waiting for the attack to come to them._

 _Ben was the first to reach the opponents side of the room. He clashed sabers with a blonde boy his age, then ducked his head and rolled over his back, dragging his blade along the boy's waist. The boy grabbed his deadly wound and dropped to the floor._

 _The rest of the students began to engage each other in combat. Ben moved from one trainee to the next, ending each fight as quickly as he could. His skill was far beyond any other students, and everyone here knew that._

 _He charged a boy his age that held a lightsaber pike in a defensive stance. He continually brought his blade down hard in vertical strikes, pushing the trainee bike. Ben then swung his lightsaber up from underneath, cutting the pike's grip in half. As the boy stumbled, Ben thrust his saber forward, impaling the boy's chest._

 _Another student ran at Ben, slashing wildly. Ben thrust his left hand forward, using the Force to hurl the student against the ember-ridden walls of the temple. The young Jedi impacted the wall with a sickening thud, falling to the floor. His lighsaber landed a few feet away._

 _As the student crawled towards his lightsaber, Ben marched over, stepping on the boy's hand to prevent him from reaching the weapon. With a strike of the blue saber, Ben pierced the boy's back and the floor below it._

" _Ben, don't do this!" A female voice to his left shouted. Ben turned around to face her. She was around his age, short and slim with light brown hair._

" _I know you're better than this Ben," she pleaded._

 _Ben stared at her with cold eyes, unmoved by what she was seeing. He ran towards her, saber in a backhand grip. He let loose a series of hard strikes, knocking her back with each blow. She relentlessly tried to keep up with each one of his attacks, but grew more tired with each one._

 _With a quick strike she lashed out at Ben's exposed left leg, leaving a burn mark across the side of his hamstring man._

 _Ben groaned in pain, retreating back a few steps. The trainee held up her lightsaber defensively, waiting for Ben to make the next move. A few tense seconds passed before Ben lunged forward, bring his lightsaber down onto hers. He brought it back to his chest then thrust forward, which she again blocked. His next attack was a quick slicing motion. The blade singed across her chest. She crumpled to the ground, smoke rising from her wounds._

 _Ben looked around the flaming temple, surveying the destruction he had caused. All of the students not loyal to him lay dead on the floor, while his associates were all alive, but had sustained various injuries._

 _Suddenly, Luke burst through the temple entrance. "Ben, stop!"_

 _Ben faced his uncle, noticing the injuries and limp he had sustained from the roof collapse. Ben smirked. He assumed this would be an easy fight._

" _I did what you trained me to do!" Ben spat with fury. "I expanded my power to reach balance in the Force! And now you're afraid of your own vision!"_

 _Ben dashed towards Luke, swinging viciously. Luke easily dodged his nephew's attacks and stepped away, ignited his green lightsaber._

" _You went straight to the dark, Ben!"_

" _I only went where you told me," Ben retorted. "And you betrayed me for it." He and his loyal followers rushed Luke, all of them slashing towards their master._

 _Luke blocked all the attacks in one deft stroke, then extended both hands outwards. A ring of Force energy pushed back all the students. Luke closed his fists and all the students froze in place, before falling over unconscious. All except for Ben, who had resisted Luke's powers._

 _Ben tauntingly swung the saber around in one hand, making quick strikes. He kept it up, trying to find hole in Luke's defense, but finding none._

 _The prodigy stepped back, trying to reassess the situation. He had to try a different tactic. He grabbed panels of the burning wall with the Force, hurling them at Luke from all sides._

 _Luke effortlessly dodged the first few clusters of flaming wood, then deflected the rest with a wave of his hand._

 _Ben screamed in frustration, reaching up and bringing down the burning ceiling. Luke was fast enough this time, sending all the debris flying outwards, far way from the temple. The burning dojo room was now exposed to the night air, walls still aflame._

 _Unable to contain his frustration, Kylo charged at Luke once again. Blue and green sabers clashed, their blades locked together. Sparks of energy wisped into the air, swirling around their faces. Ben's face contorted in a look of rage as he pushed harder and harder against Luke's saber. Luke remained stone cold and unflinching, not giving any ground._

 _The Jedi Master broke the saberlock, ducking down and stepping to the side. Ben stumbled forward, swinging wildly at Luke, but only slicing through air._

 _Ben whipped around, extending both of his hands forward, attempting to crush the very essence of the life force inside his uncle. Luke raised both his hands in defense, the two locked in a stalemate._

 _The air between them began to vibrate, as they manipulated the fabric of the Force that bound everything in the Galaxy together. The tension increased, both of the powerful Force users straining to overcome the power of the other._

 _Ben was screaming with rage, channeling his anger in his Force attack. Luke continually tried to resist, but couldn't deal with Ben's mounting power._

 _Luke's hands were slowly pushed back. The space between master and apprentice become increasingly distorted. Finally, the ground underneath Luke exploded, and he flew backwards, out of the temple._

"He must not have sensed me. He thought I was dead. And I barely clung to life. He attempted to destroy the very essence of the life Force inside me. Something I'd never seen before in my life."

 _Ben woke up each of his unconscious followers, gathering his pack. They stepped out into the cold night air, leaving behind a burning temple and a Jedi Master on the brink of death._

Rey's felt the cold raindrops impact her skin, signaling that she had returned to the physical world. Luke stared sadly at her, while she looked back, unsure of what to say.

"I was so determined on having Ben reach balance in the Force that I drove him to the Dark," Luke said, shame and regret filling his voice. "I pushed him too hard. And he ran away to the only person who would accept him."

"Snoke," Rey muttered.

Luke nodded his head in confirmation. "Ben told me that he had visions of confronting a pale demon. I ignored his concerns. I thought it was all just a part of Ben's exploration of broader aspects of the Force. And that same demon later appeared before me, telling me that Ben Solo was gone, and had been replaced by his new apprentice, Kylo Ren."

"That's why you won't train anyone," Rey said in realization. "You don't want it all to repeat itself."

"That's what I've been saying all along, Rey. It's a cycle, and I intend to break that cycle."

"Just because you failed doesn't mean it's over," Rey said. "I found the first Jedi temple, underneath the island. I had a vision where I saw the Prime Jedi. He told me how he failed, over and over, and became strong by overcoming it."

"Visions can deceive you," Luke countered. "Did you not hear what I just told you about Ben?"

"What I heard from your story is that you didn't believe your own nephew. Don't make that mistake again right now," Rey challenged.

"You don't understand, I can't just—"

"I do understand. I talked with Ben. There's still conflict in him. If he were turned from the dark side, that could shift the tide. He just needs to someone to reach out to him."

"This is not going to go the way you think," Luke warned harshly.

"It is," Rey responded confidently. "Just now, when we touched hands, I saw his future. As solid as I'm seeing you. If I go to him, Ben Solo will turn.

"Rey, don't do this."

Rey extended her arm forward, offering the lightsaber to Luke as gesture of hope, challenging him to rejoin the fight. Luke stared at the saber for a few seconds before bowing his head in resignation.

"Then he's our last hope." Rey walked away from the old Jedi Master, leaving him alone in the pouring rain.


	6. Part 6

Rey stood inside her hut, in the procession of changing into the new Jedi robes the caretakers had made for her. She donned the blue-grey outer robes over a dark tunic, fastening it all together with a leather waistband. She then placed the white cloth wrappings around her arms and slipped on a pair of brown knee-high boots.

Finally, she pulled a small section of hair on the back of her head into a ponytail, and let the rest hang free around her shoulders.

She tucked her lightsaber hilt and silver blaster pistol into her waistband before grabbing the rest of her possessions and exiting the hut.

Luke stood atop a rocky peak, solemnly watching the Millennium Falcon fly by, disappearing into the stormy night. Rey, Chewie and R2 were gone. Once again, Luke was all alone on the island.

Luke hiked up the hills of the island towards the ancient tree, having changed into his white ceremonial robes. In his hand was a thick cylindrical lighter.

As he neared the tree, a flicker of blue light caught his gaze. He turned around, eyes growing wide.

"Master Yoda," he greeted, staring down at his old green friend.

Yoda hobbled over to a rock and took a seat. "Young Skywalker."

"I'm ending all of this," Luke stated, igniting the lighter in his hand. "The tree, the text, the Jedi. I'm gonna burn it down."

He marched towards the tree, raising the lighter towards it. The flickering flame hovered inches away from the ancient wood, slightly trembling as Luke's grip began to quiver.

Luke couldn't bring himself to do it. He lowered the lighter, snuffing out the flame. He stared at the ground. Once again, he had failed the ultimate goal of his journey.

Yoda noticed Luke's dejection and breathed deeply to himself. Raising a single finger, he summoned a bolt of lightning from the storm above, sending it crashing down into the tree. Immediately, the ancient library caught ablaze.

Luke's eyes were filled with panic. He ran towards the burning tree, attempting to salvage the Jedi texts inside. Before he could reach the entrance, a blast of fire erupted from inside, knocking Luke backwards onto a patch of grass.

"Ah, Skywalker. Missed you, have I," Yoda said. "Long to reach you through the Force again, it took."

Luke slowly got up. "So it is time for the Jedi Order to end."

"Time it is, for you, to look past a pile of old books, hmm?"

"The sacred Jedi texts!" Luke corrected.

"Found inside books, knowledge of the Force is not, but rather, within oneself," Yoda said wisely. "Ah, Skywalker, still looking to the horizon. Never here, in the present."

"I was weak. Unwise," Luke muttered.

"Lost Ben Solo, you did. Lose Rey, we must not."

"I can't be what she needs me to be."

"Heeded my words not, did you?" Yoda scolded. "Pass on what you have learned. Strength, mastery. But weakness, folly, failure also. Yes, failure most of all. The greatest teacher, failure is."

Luke sat down next to Yoda, realization in his eyes. The same words Rey had told him. He saw the truth behind it. If he had not failed against Vader in their first duel, he would never have so quickly became a skilled Jedi Knight, or never have redeemed his father.

"Luke," Yoda whispered, interrupting Luke's thoughts. "We are what they grow beyond. That is the true burden of all masters."

Luke and Yoda turned to gaze at the sight before them: the charred silhouette of a massive pronged tree, engulfed in flame. Embers floated through the cool night air. The stars glimmered brightly above. The image was both beautiful and cathartic to the two Jedi that gazed on.

The flat silver luxury vessel zipped through the flashing blue light of hyperspace.

"Four parsecs to go," Finn reported. "This thing really cooks."

Rose nodded. "I just hope we're in time."

Finn turned to face DJ. "You can actually do this,

right?"

DJ slowly swiveled around in his chair, a shifty expression on his face. "Yeah, about that... Guys, I can do it. But there exists a pre-'do it' conversation about price."

"Once we're done, the Resistance will give you whatever you want," Finn assured him.

"What you got deposit-wise?"

Finn gestured to his and Rose's dirtied Resistance uniforms. "Are you kidding me? Look at us."

"Is that Haysian smelt?" DJ asked, pointing towards Rose's golden pendant. "That's something."

"No, we gave you our word. You're gonna get paid. That should be enough."

The slicer sighed. "Guys, I wanna keep helping. But no something, n-n-no doing."

Finn stepped forward angrily. "Okay, listen here, you've got—"

"Do it." Rose snapped the medallion of its chain and tossed it over to DJ.

"Now I can help," the hacker said, feigning innocence.

DJ nervously rapped his knuckles along the storage compartments inside the ships hold. Finn followed him into the hold, leaving Rose and BB-8 in the cockpit.

"Give it back," he ordered, standing as tall as he could next to DJ to create a threatening presence.

DJ didn't seem to care, pretending to be ignorant about the matter at hand. "What?"

"Give it back! You have no idea how much that medallion means to her."

"B-but whatever she wants me to do must be more important then. I'll n-n-never understand why people care about 'this side' or 'that side.' I'm just glad it makes me bank."

"And you don't care whether history sees you as a bad guy or a good guy?" Finn questioned.

"Good guys, bad guys, made-up words." DJ sat back a bench seat, kicking his legs up onto a round game table. "Finn, let me learn you something big. It's all a machine, partner. Republic, First Order, it's all a bunch-a nothing for those on t-t-top to control the rest of us below 'em. Live free, don't join."

The fuel-depraved corvette floated through space, unable to operate its thrusters anymore. It tumbled into the range of the Mega Destroyer's, and was overwhelmed with cannon bolts in a matter of seconds.

General Hux and Captain Peavy watched the destruction unfold, smug grins of satisfaction across their faces.

Peavy gazed at a hologram of the corvette, now fractured into hundreds of pieces of scrap metal. "That was the last of their support ships. It's just their main cruiser now."

"And their fuel reserve?" Hux asked.

"By our calculation, critical."

The two First Order officials continued to gaze out the bridge windows at the Resistance fleet, now down to a single ship.

Cannon bolts continued to splatter against the advanced shields of the main Resistance cruiser.

Poe strode down the white hallway of the ship, approaching the bridge. D'Acy stood outside, and turned to confront the ace pilot.

"She in there?" Poe asked.

"The admiral's banned you from the bridge," D'Acy replied. "Let's not have a scene."

"No, let's," Poe quipped before brushing past D'Acy and into the command center. "Holdo?"

The violet-haired admiral turned around to face the approaching pilot. "Flyboy," she greeted smugly, trying to get under his skin.

"Cut it, lady," Poe snapped. "We had a fleet, now we're down to one ship, and you've told us nothing! Tell us that we have a plan! That there's hope!"

Holdo remained calm despite Poe's aggressive demeanor. "When I served under Leia, she would say, hope is like the sun. If you only believe in it when you can see it..."

"You'll never make it through the night," Poe finished, knowing the mantra of his mentor by heart.

"Yes."

Poe sighed, gazing around the command center, unwilling to look Holdo directly in the eye. His eyes stopped up on particular viewscreen, showing him something that caused anger to boil up inside him.

"Are you fueling up the transports?" he asked accusingly. "You are. All of them?"

Holdo continued to stare at Poe, unwilling to address his question.

"We're abandoning ship?" Poe said in disbelief. "Is that... That's what you got? That's what you brought us to?"

Poe picked up a chair next a command console, heaving it against a monitor. "Coward! Those transport ships are unarmed, unshielded."

He began to pace along the bridge, jabbing his finger accusingly at Holdo as he spoke. "We abandon this cruiser, we're done. We don't stand a chance. No, you are not just a coward, you are a traitor."

"Get this man off my bridge," Holdo seethed. Two soldiers in dark green uniforms walked up to Poe, each grabbing one of his shoulders and escorting him out of the command center. As soon as they tossed him out of the bridge, they sealed the blast door behind them.

Poe pulled a comlink from his belt, switching it on. "Finn, Holdo's loading the crew into the transports. She's going to abandon ship. Where are you?"

"Poe, we're on our way back to the fleet. We're so close," Finn answered over his own comlink.

"Did you find a codebreaker?"

"Yeah, we found a slicer. Pretty good one too. We can shut the tracker down. Just buy us a little more time."

"All right. Hurry."

The Millennium Falcon zoomed through lightspeed, headed towards the fleet chase between the Resistance and First Order.

Rey was lowering herself into one of the Falcon's escape pods. Chewie stood next to her, helping her get situated inside the pod.

"As soon as I launch, you jump back out of range," Rey instructed. "Stay there until you get my signal for where to rendezvous."

R2 rolled up next to the escape, letting loose a series of concerned beeps. Chewie growled in agreement.

"Don't worry about me. If you see Finn before I do, tell him..."

Chewie barked softly, shrugging his shoulders.

"Yeah, perfect. Tell him that." Rey grabbed the Skywalker lighstaber, holding it to her chest as she lowered herself to lie down inside the pod. Chewie closed the front hatch and exited the launch zone.

As soon as the Wookie was clear, he opened the launch room's external doors, revealing the blue tunnel of hypserspace.

The Falcon exited lightspeed. Below it sat the immense form of the Mega Destroyer, dwarfing the rest of the First Order fleet. The escape pod shot out from the side of the Falcon, its small thrusters steering it towards Snoke's flagship. As soon as the pod was clear, Chewie sent the Falcon hurtling back into hyperspace.

As the pod floated closer to the Mega Destroyer, several TIE fighters moved in to intercept it, escorting it back towards one of the ship's many large hangars.

Kylo watched from the red and black bridge of the Mega Destroyer as the small pod was intercepted by the fighters. He sensed her, inside the pod. In fact, he had known she would come even before the pod came to his attention. He had been waiting on the bridge for some time, anticipating her arrival.

The TIE fighters broke away from the pod as they entered the massive hangar. Hundreds of stomtroopers had assembled in perfect rows, awaiting the arrival of their new guest.

As the pod touched the hangar floor, Rey tensed up in anticipation. She had felt Kylo on the bridge, and then felt his presence once again, within this very hangar.

The escape pod hatch opened, steam clouding Rey's vision. As the white vapor cleared, she saw Kylo Ren standing over her. His scar was visible in the hangar's bright lighting, and his lips were positioned in the slightest smirk.

Kylo stepped aside, revealing two stormtroopers. They bent over to look at Rey, opening a pair of binders. She stared back in fear, truly coming to the realization that she was in the den of the beast. Her wellbeing was now resting on the actions of Kylo Ren.

The silver luxury ship emerged from hyperspace directly underneath the Mega Destroyer.

DJ was furiously typing into a small datapad he had connected with the ship's main computer. "Cloaking our approach. We should be off their scopes."

Rose maneuvered the silver yacht past multiple First Order destroyers, making sure to stay in their blind spots, while DJ's hacking hid them from any sensors.

"Now we slice a slit in their shield," DJ said, pulling a computer spike from his jacket and inserting it into his datapad, "and slip right through."

In a sensor monitoring station aboard the Mega Destroyer, a First Order technician was watching a display of the flagship's shields. One section of the shield began to flicker out.

The technician flicked the viewscreen, believing it to be some sort of glitch. The flickering died out. He then resumed his normal activities.

Poe stood in front of Holdo inside the transport bay of the main cruiser, explaining how Finn and Rose were currently trying to give the fleet a chance to jump to hyperspace.

"So a Stormtrooper and a who-now are doing what?" Holdo questioned.

"They are trying to save us," Poe emphasized. "This is our best chance for escape. You have to give Finn and Rose all the time that you can."

Holdo was furious, fed up with what she was hearing. "You have bet the survival of the Resistance on bad odds and put us all at risk. There's no time now. We have to get clear of the cruiser."

She turned around to address several crew members behind her. "Load the transports."

"Right away, admiral."

When Holdo turned back around, she was staring down the barrel of a gun. Poe and his pilots had drawn their blasters on her and the rest of the current command.

"Yeah, I was afraid you'd say that," Poe sighed. "Vice Admiral Holdo, I am relieving you of your command for the survival of this ship, its crew, and the Resistance."

"I hope you understand what you're doing," Holdo said coldly.

"Yeah. I'm going to the bridge." Poe holstered his blaster pistol. "If they move, stun them."

He left the hangar, Holdo's stern gaze following him the entire way out.

Finn, Rose, DJ and BB-8 exited a laundry room, wearing freshly-pressed First Order officers' uniforms. Finn emptied a black trash bin and threw it over BB-8, concealing the droid. Several slits allowed him to see through.

An automatic door opened in front of them, revealing a room full of First Order technicians busy observing a variety of monitors and displays.

Finn took a deep breath, a rush of adrenaline pumping into his system. He looked at his two companions, both of whom looked equally nervous. He noticed DJ's improper posture and Rose's cap tilted slightly off-center.

He straightened DJ's back and guided the hacker's arms to his sides, then straightened the cap on Rose's head before nodding to both of them and entering the monitoring room.

Finn took the lead, Rose and DJ following closely, positioned behind each of his shoulders. BB-8 rolled behind them in his black trash bin disguise, imitating the beeps of a First Order droid.

As he rolled by, a black BB unit with a flattened head and red eye, designated BB-9E, swiveled around to observe the black trash bin.

Finn tried to his best to face ahead to avoid drawing attention, but found himself nervously glancing around the room.

Rose was equally paranoid. "This isn't working," she whispered harshly.

"Calm down," Finn shot back. "Just keep this up." He glanced to his left, and saw an intelligence officer in a white coat and black trousers walking parallel to them, never letting the three disguised officers out of his suits.

Finn quickly snapped his head back to face straight ahead. "Pick up the pace."

The three imposters began to take quicker steps, the white-coated officer increasing his own pace to keep up.

Finn, Rose, DJ and BB-8 finally reached the elevator, which fortunately was empty. They stepped inside and turned around, looking out the open doors into the monitoring room. The intelligence officer had walked to the middle of the room, and was now approaching the elevator.

"Finn," Rose whispered, nudging the former stormtrooper.

"I know," Finn replied, frantically hitting the elevator. The intelligence officer drew closer, staring down the trio in the elevator.

BB-8 chirped nervously.

Finn continued to mash the elevator controls.

Rose closed her eyes, trying to calm herself.

DJ removed his cap, rubbing his temples with his free hand.

"Stop!" the intel officer ordered, reaching his hand towards them.

At that same moment, the elevator doors closed. The lift slowly began to descend. The three of them collectively let out sighs of relief.

Their relief was short lived as the elevator stopped and the doors behind them opened. A group of six stormtroopers funneled into the lift, standing directly behind Finn, Rose and DJ.

The three remained silent, hoping to continue their incursion without any form of interaction with First Order personnel.

One of the stormtroopers standing behind Finn cocked his head curiously, staring at him. Finn noticed this out the corner of his eye, but kept facing ahead.

The trooper continued to stare. With the pressure mounting, Finn turned around to address the issue.

"Is there a problem, soldier?" he asked sternly, doing his best to sound authoritative.

"FN-2187…" the trooper started, "remember me? 926? Induct camp?"

Finn's hand hovered over the pistol on his hip. "926, please don't do this," he said, slowly drawing the weapon. DJ looked over, watching Finn unholster his blaster. Rose eyes flitted back and forth nervously, unsure of how Finn would handle the situation.

DJ slyly reached over to Finn, forcing him to place the pistol back into his holster. Finn complied, but kept his hand on the weapon.

926 was the first to break the tense silence. "I'm sorry FN-2187… I know I'm not supposed to initiate contact with officers, but I never took you for captain material."

Finn let out a long breath. His hand left the blaster clipped to his side.

The elevator door opened. Finn, Rose, DJ and BB-8 hurried out, turning a corner.

Rose made sure no one was nearby before speaking up. "We're not gonna stay this lucky."

"Agreed," Finn said.

"K-keep it cool, man," DJ said. "Don't blow your top."

"I know. I'm sorry." Finn took a breath to compose himself. "Follow me."

The infiltrators entered onto large walkway in stark black room. A series of glass lift tubes covered the walls on their left, while a series of tall pillars stood inside the chasm on their right.

On a platform attached to one of those pillars were the intelligence officer and BB-9E. While the officer was busy asking a technician if he'd seen any suspicious activity, the black droid spotted the three imposters and their mobile trash bin. It emitted a series of low growls, signaling the intel officer that'd he'd found the suspects.

Finn, DJ, Rose and BB-8 were nearing the end of the walkway.

"Almost there," Finn whispered.

Behind them, a lift ascended the transparent tube, passing into the upper levels of the Mega Destroyer. Inside that lift stood Rey and Kylo Ren. Rey's hands were bound in thick cuffs, while Kylo avoided eye contact with her, staring at the lift wall.

"You don't have to do this," Rey said, getting his attention. "I feel the conflict in you. It's tearing you apart. Ben, when we touched hands, I saw your future. Just the shape of it, but solid and clear. You will not bow before Snoke."

Kylo didn't respond, but she could see the storm of emotions in his eyes.

"You'll turn," she said, lowering her voice. "I'll help you."

"I saw something, too," Kylo responded, his voice deep and husky. "Because of what I saw, I know when the moment comes, you'll be the one to turn. You'll stand with me."

Rey's face grew full of concern. She and Kylo were having conflicting visions. She was so sure of her success when she embarked on this venture, but now failure loomed as a very real possibility.

Kylo sensed her inner concern, and knew exactly how to draw her attention back to him. "Rey, I saw who your parents are."

Rey's eyes grew wide. Before she could speak, the doors behind her open, revealing the crimson walls of Snoke's throne room. At its center stood a tall angular throne, with the Supreme Leader himself seated in it. Scattered around the edge of the room were his loyal Praetorian Guards.

"Well done, my good and faithful apprentice," Snoke said, his face twisted in cruel satisfaction. "My faith in you is restored."

Kylo led Rey towards the throne, kneeling before his master while Rey remained standing.

"Young Rey. Welcome," Snoke greeted with mock hospitality, clasping his spindly hands together.

Finn, Rose, DJ and a disguised BB-8 rounded a corner, walking down another black corridor marked with red trim.

"This is it," Finn said, stopping in front of a grey heavy-duty blast door. "The tracker's right behind this door."

DJ stepped towards the door, examining the control panel beside it. He flicked open a small flap beside the panel, revealing a mess of wires, fuses and circuits. He reached into his pocket and pulled out Rose's medallion, using it to connect the space between two fuses.

The circuits sparked in response, and the door control panel flashed a blue light before resetting itself. DJ then removed the crescent medallion from the fuses, blowing off a few wisps of smoke coming off its singed surface.

"Haysian smelt. Best conductor," DJ mused before handing the golden pendant back to Rose. She smiled back at him, pleasantly surprised. Finn even managed to crack a smile at DJ's actions.

"You're welcome," the slicer said before gesturing for Rose to move out his way and let him continue his work.

"So, I think now's a good time to figure out how we get back to the fleet," Rose said, grabbing Finn's arm to get his attention.

"I know where the nearest escape pods are," he replied.

"Course you do."

The comlink, currently held by BB-8, buzzed to life with Poe's voice. "Guys, tell me something good."

BB-8 chirped and launched the comlink out through the one of the slits in the trash bin.

Finn caught the comlink in one hand and brought it next to his mouth. "Poe, we're almost there. Have the cruiser prepped for lightspeed."

Poe strode down the white corridors of the Resistance cruiser, headed towards the bridge. "Yeah, I'm on it, pal. You just hurry."

The automatic blast door hissed open as Poe entered the bridge. Several Resistance members loyal to him, including Connix, were already on the bridge.

"Clear the bridge, escort the officers down to the hangar," he ordered. Two soldiers nodded to each other and removed anyone on the bridge not loyal to Poe's mutiny.

C-3PO, who happened to be on the bridge at that time, shuffled nervously. "Commander… Captain Dameron, Admiral Holdo was looking for you."

"Yeah, we spoke," Poe replied dryly.

"Sir, I am almost afraid to ask."

"Good instinct, Threepio. Go with that." Poe stepped up to the command chair, hitting buttons on the console to prep the cruiser for a jump to lightspeed.

Down in the transport hangar, Holdo and her closest advisors were still being held at gunpoint by Poe's mutineers. Slowly, Holdo reached for the slim blaster pistol she kept in the back waistband of her gown. She kicked a pipe on the floor, blowing steam in the faces of her captors.

Holdo then whipped her pistol forwards, stunning C'ai. Her advisors followed, drawing their own sidearms and unleashing blue stun blasts.

Poe witnessed the fight break out from a viewscreen on the bridge. "Seal that door!"

Connix complied, hitting a few switches on the nearest console. The door was now completely locked, and could only be opened by someone inside the bridge.

Finn anxiously kept gazing down the hallways of the Mega Destroyer, looking out for any passerby First Order personnel that could expose their mission.

"We're running out of time," Finn said quietly. He glanced over at DJ. "Come on, how's it going?"

"Almost there," the slicer reported. He pulled several computer spikes from his sleeve, inserting them into a row of thin slots on the door control panel.

Sparks flew from the frame of the bridge's blast door as an unknown party attempted to breach it. Poe drew his blaster pistol and ducked behind the command chair, using it as cover.

The molten outline around the blast door was growing bigger. C-3PO began to walk towards the door, hoping to leave this situation.

"Threepio, where do you think you're going?" Poe demanded.

"It would be quite against my programming to be party to a mutiny," the protocol droid replied.

"Hey!"

"It is not correct protocol," C-3PO reaffirmed. He turned back and continued towards the blast door, but more sparks erupted from it as the breaching party applied another laser cutter.

"Oh! Neither is this!" A panicked C-3PO turned back around, shuffling towards Poe.

Poe's voice crackled over the comlink in Finn's hand. "Finn? We're ready to make the jump!"

Finn looked over at DJ, hoping the job was done. "Now or never."

DJ held up his hand, his index finger extended. A few seconds passed. Finally, the control panel emitted a small beeping noise.

"Now," the hacker said, lowering his hand. The door retracted upwards, revealing the heavy machinery of the breaker room. A single bright light stood in the middle, contained in a large black case: the tracker's main power source.

"You're up," Finn said to Rose, tipping his head towards the power breaker. The group crossed the gangway leading to the breaker itself.

As soon as they stepped off the gangway, they heard a shrill robotic screech. BB-9E rolled out from behind the machinery, followed by the intelligence officer and a cadre of stormtroopers.

"Hands up! Drop your weapons!" One of the stormtroopers shouted, shoving the muzzle of his blaster into Finn's back. He, Rose and DJ were all forced down to the floor, their hands interlocked behind their heads.

BB-8 chirped nervously, watching his companions get captured. He remained completely still, avoiding any unwanted attention.

A chrome stormtrooper stepped across the gangway, her crimson cape dragging behind her.

Finn glared at Captain Phasma with a look of pure hatred.

"FN-2187, so good to have you back," she gloated.

Poe dropped his head, his worst fears becoming a reality. "They didn't make it…"

He turned his attention back to the door, his blaster aimed towards it and set to stun. Tense seconds passed as the breachers continued to cut away at the door.

It finally burst open, sending shards of durasteel flying across the room. Smoke poured into the bridge, concealing the identity of the breaching party.

Poe's grip tightened on the blaster pistol, adrenaline pumping through his system. He anxiously waited for the incoming onslaught.

A figure in white medical robes emerged from the smoke, their movement aided by a cane.

Poe let out a sigh of relief when he saw who itw was. "Leia."

Leia looked upon her mentee as if he were a child that had been causing trouble. Her gaze was critical, even showing a shred of disappointment. She raised her pistol, hitting Poe in the chest with a stun blast.

Connix and C-3PO whipped around to face Leia, intimated by the General's tenacity even in her current state. She hobbled past them to reclaim control of the bridge, and they made no attempt to stop her.

Alarms blared in the hangar bay, with speakers instructing everyone to board their respective transport craft. Leia and Holdo gathered near one of the transports, an unconscious Poe floating past them on a hovering gurney.

"That one's a troublemaker," Holdo commented. "I like him."

"Me, too," Leia replied. "He can be rash sometimes, but I respect his stubbornness. It reminds me of someone."

Holdo nodded knowingly. "Han."

Leia sighed, a glint of sadness in her eyes. She took a deep breath to compose herself. "Now, time to board your transport."

"For the transports to escape, someone needs to stay behind and pilot the cruiser," Holdo explained.

Leia shook her head. "Too many losses. I can't take any more."

"Sure you can. You taught me how."

Leia looked back at her old friend, filled with both sadness and admiration. "May the Force be with you…always." She clasped Holdo's hand, reminiscing in the memories of their lifelong friendship. Finally, she let go and boarded her transport.

The transport pilot ignited the engines, then threw a series of levers. "Cloaking device activated. We should be off their scopes."

In the transport's hold, D'Acy turned to Leia. "Let's hope this works."

"Don't we all," Leia muttered, gazing out the window. Holdo stood alone in the hangar, watching as the transports took off. She glanced at her longtime friend one last before turning away.

The cuffs binding Rey's hands emitted a beeping sound, unshackling her before falling to the floor.

"Come closer, child," Snoke ordered. With a slight wave of his hand, Rey was lifted off her feet, her toes scraping along the floor as she was dragged towards Snoke.

The decrepit Supreme Leader observed Rey's slim and fragile form. Judging by what was on the outside, one could hardly guess the power that lay within.

"So much strength," he breathed, clenching his fist. "Darkness rises, and light to meet it."

Snoke lifted his index finger. The Skywalker lightsaber was unclipped from Kylo's belt and flew across the room, landing softly on the armrest of Snoke's throne.

"I warned my young apprentice that as he grew stronger, his equal in the light would rise. Skywalker, I assumed—wrongly."

Snoke gestured his hand forward. "Closer, I said."

Rey was again dragged along the polished black floors of the throne room, ranting at the Supreme Leader as she approached him. "You underestimate Skywalker, and Ben Solo, and me. It will be your downfall."

"Oh... Have you seen something?" Snoke asked tauntingly. "A weakness in my apprentice? Is that why you came?"

The Supreme Leader cackled. "Young fool. It was I who bridged your minds. I stoked Ren's conflicted soul. I knew he was not strong enough to hide it from you. And you were not wise enough to resist the bait."

Snoke pulled her towards him with the Force, his face inches from hers. He reached out a mangled hand, caressing her face. "And now, you will give me Skywalker. Then I will kill you with the cruelest stroke."

"No," Rey responded defiantly.

"Yes." Snoke extended his hand forward, levitating Rey high above the floor. She grunted in pain, her insides feeling like they were on fire, being slowly ripped apart by some unknown source.

Snoke closed his eyes. "Give. Me. Everything."

"No. No," Rey muttered, trying to resist Snoke's torture. Kylo's gaze slowly traveled upwards, stopping on Rey's frozen form. His eyes became glassy. His throat became increasingly dryer.

Rey finally released a harsh scream, unable to withstand the unrelenting pain.

Poe jolted upright on the gurney. He looked around, coming to the realization that he was no longer aboard the Resistance cruiser. His mind went into overdrive. Panic flooded his body.

He leapt up from the gurney and placed his hands against the transport window, watching the cruiser in the distance.

"No. No," he muttered. His temper flared. "No, no, no!" He pounded his fist against the thick glass.

"Poe," Leia said, getting his attention. She waved for him to come over.

Poe got up and slowly crossed the hold of the transport, sitting down on a bench next to Leia. She pointed out the window towards a planet, half pale, half silhouetted in shadow.

"What is that?" Poe asked.

"The mineral planet, Crait," D'Acy answered. "An uncharted hideout from the days of the Rebellion."

"That's a Rebel base?"

"Abandoned, but heavily armored, with enough power to get a distress signal to our allies scattered in the Outer Rim."

"Holdo knew the First Order was tracking our big ship," Leia explained. "They're not monitoring for little transports."

Poe began to understand the plan as it was unfolding before him. "So we could slip down to the surface unnoticed and hide 'til the First Order passes… That could work."

"She was more interested in protecting the light than she was seeming like a hero," Leia said. "Holdo's smart, but she's not the most inspiring leader. She has a tendency to not communicate well with the people under her command. She likely would've been the Grand Admiral of the Republic Fleet if that wasn't holding her back."

Poe sighed to himself, having gained a whole new perspective on the woman he thought he hated. He stared back out at the cruiser, realizing she was alone at the helm, putting herself at risk for the rest of the Resistance.


	7. Part 7

Finn and Rose were escorted by a group of stormtroopers into a massive hangar. Rose looked around in fear, but Finn was cold and calm, simply staring directly ahead with a smoldering glare.

Hundreds of stormtroopers, TIE pilots and even snowtroopers were gathered in precise rows, filling up the entirety of the hangar. AT-ATs and TIE fighters hung from racks on the ceiling.

Finn and Rose were to going be made into an example of what happens when one betrays the First Order. The spectacle would be witnessed by a massive audience of First Order soldiers, deterring them from questioning their allegiance.

While Finn's initial betrayal had been covered up by the regime to prevent further defectors, they now had the traitor in their hands. The First Order could now demonstrate the futility of trying to run away from their duties.

Finn and Rose were shoved to their knees, still held at blaster point. The two looked up to find General Hux and Captain Phasma standing over them.

"Well done, Phasma," Hux said. He stared down upon the two prisoners, a gloating smirk growing on his face. He turned sideways, prompting Finn and Rose to turn their heads and follow his gaze.

"Your ship and payment, as we agreed," Hux stated.

DJ emerged from the crowd of stormtroopers, approaching a hovercart loaded with boxes of credits. The slicer ran his hand over the boxes before looking at Rose and Finn. A small frown tugged at his lips.

"You lying filth!" Rose shrieked, struggling against the grip of the stormtroopers holding her back.

Finn didn't attempt to resist, only staring at DJ with a deadened look in his eyes.

DJ shrugged. "We got caught, I cut a d-d-deal."

Finn furrowed his brow. "Wait, cut a deal with what?"

A black-clad officer approached Hux. "Sir, we checked on the information from the thief. We ran a decloaking scan, and sure enough, Resistance transports have just launched from the cruiser."

"He told us the truth," Hux said. "Will wonders never cease?"

A look of horror appeared on Rose's face. "No…"

"Our weapons are ready?" Hux inquired.

"Ready and aimed, sir."

Hux smiled savagely, never taking his eyes off Finn and Rose. "Fire at will."

"No! No!" Rose screamed, continued to writhe against the stormtroopers' hold.

The Mega Destroyer's cannons whirred to life, spitting out orange slugs. They arced across a large stretch of open space before colliding with several of the Resistance transports, which were instantly disintegrated by the powerful cannon bolts.

Poe stared out the window of his transport, watching in horror as the craft next to his erupted into a ball of flame.

Holdo watched from the bridge of the main cruiser as transports begin to explode one after another. Her jaw dropped.

A hologram appeared before her, showing one of the transport pilots. "Admiral, we're taking fire! Do we turn around?"

"No, you're too far out. Full speed to planetfall. Full speed!"

"Yes Admir—" The hologram fizzled out as another one of the transports was hit by the Mega Destroyer's barrage.

Rey felt the painful sensation leave her body. The invisible grip holding her suddenly released her. She fell to the floor, landing hard on her side.

"Well, well," Snoke mused, watching Rey as she struggled to her feet. "I did not expect Skywalker to be so wise. We will give him and the Jedi Order the death he desires. After the Rebels are gone, we will go to his planet and obliterate the entire island."

Rey felt anger well up inside her at the mention of Luke. She quickly reached towards the throne, pulling the Skywalker lightsaber towards her.

Instead of flying into her hand, it zipped right by her, circling around before smacking her in the back of the head. She yelped in pain, watching the lightsaber return to Snoke and nestle itself by his side.

"Such spunk," the Supreme Leader exclaimed, amused by Rey's attempts to fight back.

"Look here now," he said, waving his hand. She was dragged across the floor towards a circular viewport that magnified the patch of space in front of her. She could see a fleet of transports moving along, with one of the transports disappearing into a fireball every few seconds.

"The entire Resistance on those transports..." Snoke said, letting his words sink into Rey's mind. "Soon they will all be gone. For you, all is lost."

Still determined to fight back, Rey whipped around from the viewport, using the Force to grab Kylo's lightsaber from his belt. She ignited the unstable crimson blade, ready to strike.

Several Praetorian Guards standing near her lurched into actions, activating the energy filaments of their bladed weapons. They stood ready to attack, but waited upon the Supreme Leader's orders.

"Ooh. And still that fiery spit of hope. You have the spirit of a true Jedi!" Snoke only had to lift a finger to send Rey flying back towards the center of the room. She landed in front of Kylo's kneeling form, his lightsaber deactivating and falling from her grasp. The hilt slid across the floor and stopped before him, slowly spinning before becoming motionless.

Kylo's eyes lit up, focusing on the Skywalker saber resting on Snoke's throne. Rey's body suddenly shot up off the floor, her bent knees levitating inches above the ground.

"And because of that, you must die," Snoke finished. Rey's body slowly began to rotate until she came face-to-face with Kylo Ren.

"My worthy apprentice, son of darkness, heir apparent to Lord Vader," Snoke bellowed. "Where there was conflict, I now sense resolve. Where there was weakness, strength. Complete your training, and fulfill your destiny."

Rey gazed up at Kylo, her eyes begging for mercy.

"I know what I have to do," Kylo said quietly, picking up his lightsaber.

"Ben," she pleaded, her eyes beginning to water.

"You think you can turn him?" Snoke taunted. "Pathetic child. I cannot be betrayed, I cannot be beaten. I see his mind, I see his every intent."

Snoke closed his eyes, relishing his own power. "Yes… I see him turning the lightsaber to strike true."

Kylo slowly rotated the crossguard hilt in his hand, aiming it towards Rey's chest. At the same time, unbeknownst to Snoke, the Skywalker lightsaber beside him also begin to rotate in its place.

Snoke's malicious grin grew even wider. "And now, foolish child, he ignites it, and kills his true enemy!"

Kylo flicked two fingers of his left hand.

The sound of a lightsaber activating echoed throughout the throne room.

Snoke's eyes shot open, face twisted in pain, as the blue lightsaber blade piercing through the side of his body.

Rey suddenly dropped to floor. She propped herself up with her hands and stared at Kylo.

With another flick of his fingers, Kylo summoned the Skywalker lightsaber, cutting Snoke completely in half. The Supreme Leader's torso hit the floor with a dull thud as the saber's hilt flew into Rey's outstretched hand.

Rey slowly got to her feet, her eyes glued on Kylo's. Around them, the Praetorian Guards prepared for battle, activating their melee weapons.

Kylo ignited his red saber, his eyes never leaving Rey's. Their minds were currently in tandem, and they both knew what they had to do.

The two turned back to back, getting into a defensive position as the Guards charged at them from all sides. They blocked the first strikes from the red-clad warriors, their position allowing them to cover all angles.

Kylo ducked a double bladed staff, angling his saber towards the floor to deflect a strike headed for his legs.

At the same time, Rey dropped to one knee, holding her saber above her head as three energy weapons slammed down onto blue blade.

The fight was utter chaos. Rey and Kylo continued to slash and block, their position allowing them eliminate any exposed angles. Their minds worked together, and their fighting moves complemented each other, as if they were part of some elegant but deadly dance.

Rey swept her lightsaber across the blades of the incoming Praetorians, causing them to step back before re-engaging.

Kylo avoided a strike from a large spearhead, the blade passing in front his face. He raised his saber to block a pair of incoming strikes from two Praetorians. Sparks flew from their weapons as they locked together.

Rey took advantage of this, stabbing one of the guards whose weapon was locked with Kylo's saber. The Guard crumpled to the ground, but another Guard quickly took the fallen one's place in their fighting formation.

While both Kylo and a Praetorian Guard continued to lock blades, another Guard twirled his dagger-staff at Kylo, who caught the mid-section of the staff with his free hand and pushed back the Guard.

As the Praetorian Guard stumbled back, Kylo slashed across its chest with his lightsaber, leaving a smoldering vertical scar through the segmented red armor.

Rey continued to block the Praetorian's attacks, and interlocked one of her arms with Kylo's, rolling up onto his back and delivering a kick to the chest of one of the Guards.

Another fleeing Resistance transport shattered under the impact of a cannon bolt.

Poe witnessed this from the hold of his transport and ran into the cockpit. "Come on, give it full thrusters. Full speed!"

"I am, sir," the pilot replied, fear in her voice. The transports were only capable of going so fast.

A bright light flashed outside the cockpit viewport as a transport in front of them was hit. Poe and the two pilots instinctively flinched and ducked down at the sight of the explosion.

"You murdering bastard!" Finn shouted, releasing his pent-up anger.

"T-T-Take it easy, Big F," DJ replied, finishing his inspection of his reward. "They blow you up today, you blow them up tomorrow. It's j-just business."

"You're wrong."

DJ shrugged his shoulders and raised his eyebrows. "Maybe." He turned around, walking towards the silver yacht while his boxes of credits were pulled along by a few First Order crewmen.

Finn didn't attempt to shout back, only glaring at DJ as the slicer walked towards his ship.

Kylo let out a low grunt as his lightsaber blade blocked both an energized spear and sword. He twisted his body and stepped away, grabbing a Praetorian Guard by the back of the neck and slamming him into the other.

A few meters away, Rey was facing two Praetorians, one with a dagger-staff and one with an energy sword. She was slowly retreated as she blocked the Guards' blows.

As both Guards swung towards her head, she bent her body forward and stood on one leg, parallel to the floor, as she spun and evaded the attack. As she whirled around front, she righted herself and slashed across the chest of the Praetorian Guard carrying the dagger-staff.

As the Guard fell, the sword-wielding Praetorian transformed his weapon into a segmented energy whip, lashing out towards Rey with it.

She blocked the attack, but the whip caught on her saber. The Praetorian Guard took advantage of this, wrapping the segmented whip around his arm to draw her in closer. It grabbed her neck with its red-gloved hand, trying to force the spiked end of the whip into her throat.

Rey struggled out of the Praetorian's grasp, thrusting the saber forward and impaling the guard through the chest, the energy whip still clinging to the blue blade. She swung her saber forward, the whip disconnecting and flying into the red curtain walls surrounding the throne room, catching them aflame.

A Praetorian Guard with a dual-bladed staff pulled his weapon apart, now wielding two daggers. He stepped towards Rey, menacingly swinging the daggers in a display of skill.

Rey screamed back at the Guard, furiously twirling her lightsaber before charging forward to engage her enemy.

Kylo threw up his saber to block a Praetorian's spearhead and noticed another spear-carrying Praetorian approaching out of the corner of his eye. His red saber maintained contact with the first spear as he swung it downwards to block the second. The three weapons crackled as they locked together.

Kylo looked upwards, spotting a third Praetorian charging towards him, weapon raised to attack. He swung his lightsaber upwards, breaking the lock with the two spears and impaling the third approaching Praetorian.

Kylo Ren flung the Praetorian Guard off his blade, sending it into a pit where it exploded in a shower of blue lightning. Tatters of red cloth and armor were thrown into the air.

Holding his lightsaber at eye level, parallel to ground, Kylo cautiously watched the two Praetorians encircling him. His eyes then darted over to Rey as she fought the dagger-wielding Guard. She was being pushed back, struggling with fatigue. She continued to block the Praetorian's strikes, but one slipped passed her and grazed her arm, leaving a long cut.

Kylo's temper rose as Rey shrieked in pain. The Praetorian Guard behind him extended its sword into a whip, swinging it towards Kylo. The Dark Side warrior blocked the whip strike and even deflected the spear attacks of two incoming Praetorians.

His lightsaber clashed with one of the massive spearheads, while he caught the other spear by the handle. He then removed his saber from its contact with the spear, swinging it backwards to decapitate the whip-carrying Guard. The red helmet bounced across the throne room floor.

Rey continued to fight the same dagger-carrying Praetorian as chunks of flaming red curtain fell all around her. The Guard threw both of his daggers against her blue saber and kicked her in the stomach, knocking her to the ground.

She quickly leapt back to her feet, wildly swinging at the Praetorian Guard, who had now gained the upper hand.

A section of flaming curtain swung past Kylo, who was locked in combat with a spear-wielding Guard. Kylo grabbed the Praetorian's spear, prying it away while kicking the red Guard back.

He then turned to engage the other Praetorian, using both the spear and his lightsaber in a combo of strikes to drive his enemy back. The unarmed Preatorian jumped in front of him, using its armored wrist gauntlets to block Kylo's saber.

With his lightsaber currently ineffective, Kylo reached around the back of the Guard with the spear, shoving the blade deep into its armor.

He looked up to see another Praetorian Guard swing a spear towards his face. He jumped back, accidentally letting go of his lightsaber and newly-gained spear. He dodged a few strikes and caught the handle of Praetorian Guard's spear with both hands, but the Praetorian leapt around Kylo's back, pulling the handle towards his neck, attempting to choke him out.

Rey and her Praetorian opponent reached the edge of the throne room platform, still engaged in vicious combat. Rey struck one of the Guard's daggers with as much strength as she could muster, managing to knock the weapon away.

The Guard stabbed at her with its remaining dagger, but she evaded the attack and was thrown slightly off-balance. The Praetorian saw this and grabbed her, locking its arm around hers and bringing the dagger towards her face.

Rey held back the dagger, the tip of its energized blade hovering inches from her face. However, due to their arms being interlocked, her saber was immobile.

Rey took a deep breath, letting go of the lightsaber. She pulled her arm out from the Praetorian's and caught the saber as it fell, swinging it across the Guard's waistline, then up across its neck.

The Praetorian Guard went limp, dropping its dagger and tumbling backwards off the edge of the platform.

Rey turned her attention back to Kylo, who was still struggling with the Guard attempting to choke him with its spear handle. She had to act fast.

"Ben!" she shouted, deactivating her lightsaber and throwing it across the room. Ben reached up and caught it, holding over the Praetorian's mask. His thumb quickly activated the lightsaber, the blade piercing through the Praetorian Guard's faceplate.

Kylo deactivated the saber. Smoke poured from the hole in the Praetorian's helmet. The Guard let go of the spear held to Kylo's neck and dropped to the floor.

Kylo cast aside the spear and stood upright, staring at Rey. Rey stared back, still processing what had happened. The room was torn up, chunks of flaming red curtain littering the floor. Embers fell from the ceiling. Snoke was dead. She and Kylo had teamed up to fight his Guards. All of what she had seen in her vision. Despite this, she was still so unsure of what would happen next.

"The fleet," the Rey said, panic sweeping through her as she remembered the situation at hand. "Order them to stop firing. There's still time to save the fleet."

Kylo didn't respond. He stared back at her, his breathing heavy.

Fear rose in the pit of Rey's stomach. "Ben?"

"It's time to let old things die," Kylo stated. "Snoke, Skywalker. The Sith, the Jedi, the Rebels... Let it all die."

He stepped forward. "Rey. I want you to join me. We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy.

"Don't do this, Ben," Rey pleaded, desperately hoping he would show mercy to her friends in the Resistance. "Please don't go this way. You don't have to burn everything down to create peace."

"No, no. You're still holding on! Let go! The old ways have failed us, Rey. People like you and me. We need to burn down the past. It's how we create peace in our future."

Rey's eyes became glassy. "Ben… please… I thought…" She tried to process her thoughts, but couldn't find the right words.

"Do you wanna know the truth about your parents?" Kylo asked. "Or have you always known? And you've just hidden it away."

Rey failed to respond. Tears began to roll down her face.

"You know the truth," he continued. "Say it. Say it."

Rey paused before finally answering. "They were nobody."

"They were filthy junk traders who sold you offfor drinking money."

Rey broke down into sobs.

Kylo noticed her sadness but continued to speak. "They're dead in a paupers' grave in the Jakku desert. You have no place in this story. You come from nothing. You're nothing."

Rey looked down at the ground, swarmed by feelings of loneliness and rejection.

"But not to me," Kylo finished. Rey perked up.

"Join me," he said, offering his hand. "Please."

Holdo watched with steely determination as another transport was obliterated. She couldn't let this happen to the Resistance she'd fought so hard to protect. Using the cruiser as a distraction wasn't enough. She needed a new plan of action.

She stepped up to the command chair, typing in a new set of commands. The cruiser's multitude of blow-glowing engines revved up.

Captain Peavy, aboard the bridge of the Mega Destroyer, noticed a new reading appear on the holographic display next to him. "Sir, the Resistance cruiser's preparing to jump to lightspeed."

"It's empty," Hux replied sharply. "They're just trying to pull our attention away. Pathetic. Keep your fire on the transports."

Rey slowly reached upwards to grab Kylo's outstretched hand. Before she could contact it, she fully extended her arm, reaching for the Skywalker lightsaber with the Force. It flew from Kylo's hand, but stopped before it could reach her grasp.

Kylo had also reached out for it, attempting to call it back to him via the Force. The two were nearly equal in raw power. The lightsaber hovered between them, vibrating in the air due to the strain put on it.

Finn and Rose were shoved to the ground, blasters pointed at their backs.

"Execution by blaster is too good for them," Phasma declared. "Let's make this hurt."

Phasma stepped aside, revealing a pair of executioner stormtroopers holding energy axes. The executioners walked over to Finn and Rose, holding the buzzing blue energy blades of the axes inches from their necks.

"On my command," Phasma stated, raising her chrome hand.

Poe and Connix stood by the window of their transport, explosions reflecting off the glass. They were observing the Resistance cruiser as it powered up to attack speed and began to turn towards the First Order fleet.

"She's running away," Connix sighed.

Poe squinted in realization. "No, she isn't."

The Resistance cruiser had swung fully around, and was now aimed directly at the Mega Destroyer. On the cruiser bridge, Holdo began to punch a series of calculations into the hyperspace computer.

Hux's eyes grew wide in fear when he realized what was about to happen. "No! Fire on that cruiser!"

Both Rey and Kylo grunted under the strain of using the Force, the lightsaber hilt still suspended in the air between them.

Rey groaned, summoning all the strength she had. The lightsaber slowly inched towards her. Kylo saw this and channeled all of his effort into pulling the lightsaber back. It inched closer to him.

Phasma lowered her hand. "Execute."

The executioners raised their axes above them. Finn and Rose closed their eyes, waiting to feel the energized blades slicing through their necks.

Holdo stared down the Mega Destroyer directly in front of her. Her gaze was filled with fiery determination. She slowly pulled a lever on the command chair, sending the cruiser into hyperspace.

A blue streak zipped through open space, slicing through the starboard wing of the Mega Destroyer. It released a massive field of fast-moving debris, which collided with the destroyers directly behind the flagship, tearing them to shreds. In one swift stroke, a large portion of the pursuing First Order fleet had been decimated.

Leia and Poe gazed at the destruction from their transport. Poe stared on with a newfound admiration for Holdo, while Leia's expression grew somber at the loss of her old friend.

The space between the Mega Destroyer and its starboard wing grew wider as the two sections floated apart. Each half began to list downwards. Leia knew the ship was now unusable as a combat vessel, but the First Order could easily salvage the legions of ground troops inside to launch a counterattack.

Finn's eyes bolted open to see Rose dragging him along the floor of the hangar by his leg. He began to struggle, trying to loosen her grip.

Rose felt the stirring and turned around, letting go of him. "Finn! There's a shuttle back that way! We gotta go!"

The two sprinted across the hangar, which had been torn up due to the lightspeed ramming attack. Stormtrooper bodies lay across the floor. Flaming TIE fighters fell from their racks and exploded when they hit the ground.

In a corridor outside the hangar, BB-8, his trash bin now removed, had plugged himself into a computer terminal, trying to find Finn and Rose's location. Sparks fell from the corridor ceiling, and First Order personnel frantically ran by, trying to escape the flames and destruction.

BB-9E rolled down the same corridor, spotting the white and orange ball droid. BB-8 turned around, beeping nervously. The black First Order droid grunted angrily and rolled forward, hoping to ram the intruder.

BB-8 unplugged from the computer terminal and rolled out of the way. BB-9E smacked into the wall, letting out a deep whirring sound.

BB-8 took this opportunity to escape, rolling down the hallway to find Finn and Rose. By the time BB-9E came to its senses, BB-8 was gone. The black droid growled in frustration.

Inside the hangar, Finn and Rose were nearing the shuttle. However, Phasma and a contingent of stormtroopers stepped out of the billowing smoke, pointing their weapons at Finn and Rose.

"Traitor!" Phasma shouted as she powered up her blaster. Before she could fire, an explosion sent several of her stormtroopers tumbling across the hangar floor.

"What?" Phasma looked around to find the source of the explosion. She spotted an AT-ST placed in its rack, firing its guns towards them. She and her other stromtroopers fired their blaster towards the walker, but the bolts did little to penetrate its armor.

The AT-ST continued to fire, blowing away dozens of stormtroopers. It's legs began to move, despite the head-like cockpit still being attached to its storage rack. The head was pried away, leaving only the legs and a small platform atop them, on which BB-8 sat, having hotwired the AT-ST.

Finn and Rose stared incredulously at BB-8 before going to grab weapons off the floor. Rose grabbed a white blaster pistol, while Finn picked up a nearby riot baton.

"Finn!" Rose shouted.

Finn whipped around, coming face-to-face with Captain Phasma, who held a long silver spear in her hand. Rose fired her blaster at Phasma, but the weak bolts only bounced off her chrome armor.

A stormtrooper manning a megablaster turret spotting Rose and directed his fire towards her. Blaster bolts pinged off the floor, forcing Rose to take cover behind a supply box.

Finn let loose a guttural war cry, activating his riot baton. He charged forward, smashing a stormtrooper across the face with his weapon. Without breaking pace he continued towards Phasma, clashing his riot baton against her spear in a leaping attack. The baton slid down her spear and glanced off her shoulder plate.

Light blue electricity flowed from the riot baton onto her spear and armor. Phasma stepped back but didn't relent. She swung her spear again, this time locking her weapon against his.

"You are a bug in the system," she seethed.

Finn only glared back at her, his eyes filled with anger and determination. He broke away from her, ducking as Phasma's spear swung over his head.

Rose was still engaged in a firefight with the trooper manning the megablaster cannon. Her pistol's short range didn't help her situation. A stormtrooper flanked around to confront her, but she dropped him with a quick blaster shot.

Around Rose, stormtroopers kept trying to shoot BB-8 atop the AT-ST. The droid came near her, shooting the trooper manning the cannon out of his gunner's nest. Rose sighed in relief, but saw another stormtrooper approach from the corner of her eye.

A blaster bolt impacted the supply box she was taking cover behind. She poked her head and arm out, shooting the stormtrooper in the chest.

Finn continually stepped backward, deflecting each of Phasma's strikes as she advanced on him. He spun the baton around, smashing it against her spear. Phasma staggered back from the hit and took up a defensive position.

"Come on!" he shouted, taunting her to attack. Phasma lurched forward and delivered a wide swing. Finn bent backwards, the tip of the spear passing by his chest. He swung his baton around in a full rotation, bring it down on the center of Phasma's spear.

As his baton locked against the spear, Finn pushed forward, trying to drive Phasma back. The chrome stromtrooper pulled back her spear, causing Finn to trip forwards. With his defenses down, she delivered a strong backhand to his face.

Finn stumbled back, his face throbbing. He barely blocked Phasma's next strike, which put him further off balance. He now stood on the edge of a lift platform, a gaping hole in the hangar floor.

Phasma lashed out with her spear. Finn put up his baton to block the hit, but the impact knocked him backwards into the pit.

"No!" Rose had witnessed Finn's fall, prompting her to charge at Phasma. She fired her pistol, but Phasma whipped around and drew her own sidearm, blasting away at Rose, who ducked to the floor to avoid being hit.

Unknown to Phasma, the lift behind her had risen up, carrying Finn with it. Finn leapt off it back up onto the hangar floor, charging at Phasma.

The chrome trooper heard the footsteps behind her and turned around, bringing her pistol to bear on Finn. But Finn was too quick, swiping her blaster hand clean off with a swing of his electrified baton.

Phasma screamed in pain, reeling back. Finn brought back his riot baton before putting all his strength into one final strike. The baton impacted Phasma's helmet, directly across her eye.

The chrome captain fell backwards, landing next to a fiery tear in the hangar floor. Battered and defeated, she looked up at Finn, who looked down on he with a demeanor of confidence and domination.

The floor panels below Phasma began to rattle. Her eyes widened in shock before she felt the metal panels below her give way. She tumbled through the air, spiraling into the fiery pit below.

Finn stared down at where Phasma had just been, adrenaline and excitement still pumping thorugh his veins from his victory.

Rose's voice brought him back to reality. "Hey! Need a lift?"

He turned around to see Rose atop the headless AT-ST, kneeling next to BB-8. He smiled and climbed aboard. The walker galloped through the collapsing hangar, delivering them to the shuttle.

Finn, Rose and BB-8 hopped aboard and fired up the shuttle engines, exiting the hangar into the debris-filled space around the Mega Destroyer.

Hux surveyed the ruined throne room. The red curtains had entirely burned away, revealing the enormous windows underneath. All the Praetorian Guards lay dead. The lower half of Snoke's body rested on the throne, while his torso was splayed across the floor. Kylo Ren lay facedown in the center of the room, unconscious.

Hux walked over to Kylo, examining his rival. The General slowly reached into his dark coat, unholstering his blaster pistol.

Kylo suddenly bolted upright, his disheveled hair covering his face. The last thing he remembered was something impacting the Mega Destroyer before he was flung across the room and knocked out.

Hux immediately returned his pistol to its holster. "What happened?"

"The girl murdered Snoke," Kylo answered, getting to his feet.

"What happened?" Hux repeated, implying that he needed more information.

Kylo looked out the throne room window, fixated on the planet Crait in the distance. "She took Snoke's escape craft. We know where she's going. Get all our forces down to that Resistance base. Let's finish this."

Kylo turned around to exit the throne room, but was interrupted by Hux.

"Finish this?" the General asked incredulously, stepping towards Kylo. "Who do you think you're talking to? You presume to command my army? Our Supreme Leader is dead! We have no ruler!"

Hux suddenly felt an iron grip around his neck, squeezing his airway shut.

Kylo stepped forward, his hand held outwards. "The Supreme Leader is _dead_."

"Long live… the Supreme Leader," Hux sputtered, his hands grasping at his throat.

The barren salt flats of Crait seemed to go forever, with the exception of one wide cliff face. Embedded into the cliff face was a massive bronze-colored shield door, protecting the old Rebel base inside. In front of the shield door were rows of trenches and a perimeter of heavy gun turrets.

The door was cracked open, leaving twenty feet of space for the transports to enter. The last transports had long since arrived, but Leia had remained by the door, staring out onto the salt flats.

She heard the scream of TIE fighters in the distance. "They're coming, shut the door," she said into her comlink.

A heavy metallic groan rang out as the door slowly began to descend. Crystalline foxes known as vultpexes scurried inside the base, sensing the looming danger.

A Resistance trooper ran up next to opening underneath the door, looking into the distance with a pair of macrobinoculars.

A shuttle was headed straight for the base, with two TIE fighters following closely behind, firing away.

"Incoming!" he shouted, waving for everyone to get back way from the shield door.

Poe picked up a blaster rifle and gathered up all the troops around him. "Go! Go! Move!" They all sprinted deeper into the mine as green blaster bolts whizzed under the door, exploding against the ground and killing any nearby troopers.

The shuttle continued towards the door, dipping underneath it and shearing off its top tail fin. The door then closed shut behind the shuttle as it plowed across the ground, tearing up chunks of rock.

As the shuttle slowed to a stop, Poe, Leia and any nearby Resistance troopers raised their rifles towards it and began to open fire. Hundreds of blaster bolts left charred marks on the body of the First Order shuttle.

Suddenly, two pairs of hands shot up through the broken glass of the shuttle cockpit, indicating some sort of surrender.

"Hold your fire!" Poe commanded. The soldiers in the base powered down their blasters.

Finn and Rose cautiously peeked out of the cockpit, hoping to not be shot by a trigger-happy Resistance trooper.

"Finn! Rose! You're not dead!" Poe exclaimed with excitement. "Where's my droid?"

The forward ramp of the shuttle opened and BB-8 rolled out. Poe ran to meet his droid, getting to his knees so he could pet his companion.

"Buddy! I'm so glad to see you," he said patting the droid's head.

In the shuttle cockpit, Rose looked around at the number of troops that made up the Resistance. When she and Finn left on their mission, the Resistance was two thousand strong. Now it looked like only half of that remained.

"Is this all that's left?" she whispered.

Finn nodded sadly.

Poe opened up a few old dusty control consoles, helping to set up a makeshift command center within the mine.

The hotshot pilot rubbed his hands together to get rid of the thick coating of dust. "All right, shields are up so they can't hit us from orbit. Use whatever power we've got left o broadcast a distress signal to the Outer Rim."

"Use my personal code," Leia interjected. "If there are any allies to the Resistance, it's now or never."

"Rose, what do you got?" Poe asked, turning to face the mechanic.

"Rotting munitions, rusted artillery, some half-gutted skim speeders," she reported dismally.

Poe sighed. "Well, let's just pray that big-ass door holds long enough for us to get help."

A distant rumbling shook the mine. Shards of red crystals fell from overstuffed barrels. A few vulptexes whimpered in fear.

On the salt flats outside the mine, the First Order arrived in full force. Massive carriers deployed a variety of walkers, dropping them to the planet's surface. Formations of troop carriers, TIE fighters and TIE bombers hovered above the walkers.

Overall, the First Order had brought a formidable army. The backbone of it was formed by eleven massive hunch-backed AT-M6s, four-legged walkers packing powerful cannons mounted on their backs. Five AT-ATs, smaller quadruped walkers updated from their old Imperial versions, marched alongside their larger counterparts.

Supporting the large walkers were a variety of scout walkers. One was the AT-ST, updated to match the technology of the First Order. Another was a heavy scout walker called the AT-HS, which featured eight tightly-packed, jointed spider-like legs, with a slim armored head mounted on top. Lastly, there were several heavy haulers, designated as AT-HH, which were boxy, square-shaped vehicles that crawled along on dozens of jointed legs.

Marching alongside the armored vehicles was every type of infantry unit the First Order could muster: stormtroopers, snowtroopers, megablaster-wielding heavy assault troopers, and even flametroopers armed with incinerators.

Above the formation, held up by multiple carriers, was a massive tubular superlaser siege cannon. It had thick armored hull, and several deployable legs that held it in place when it fired. The rim of the barrel was ringed with a series of large, menacing spikes. The siege cannon was far noticeably far larger than any of the walkers as it was placed down on the salt flats as the centerpiece of the First Order's formation.

Floating above the army was Kylo Ren, seated in the cockpit of his bat-like shuttle. General Hux stood at the front of the cockpit, gazing at the Resistance mine through the red-tinted viewport.

Finn stepped up to the macro-periscope that offered view of outside the mine, taking a few seconds to observe the might of the First Order's army.

"A battering ram cannon," he reported. "Miniaturized Death Star tech. It'll crack that door right open. They've also got well over a dozen heavy walkers, plus some scout walkers and a whole ton of troopers and fighters."

Poe's mouth dropped open upon hearing the sheer amount of firepower they would be facing. "There has to be a back way out of here, right?"

BB-8 chirped a few time and rolled up next to Poe.

"BB-8, what do you got?" the pilot asked his droid.

"BB-8 has analyzed the mine's schematics," C-3PO translated. "This is the only way in or out."

Another bout of distant rumbling began, causing the metal wall supports of the mine to creak. Resistance soldiers turned to one another in fear.

Finn, noticing the disheartened troopers, spoke up. "Come on. We have allies. People believe in Leia. They'll get our message, they'll come. But we have to buy time. We gotta take out that cannon."

"Finn's right," Leia added, stepping up beside him. "If we don't make our stand now, this Resistance will end here. I've fought my entire life to stop a tyrant from ruling the Galaxy. I've seen darker times than this. Today is where we turn the tide against the First Order."

Hundreds of Resistance troopers raised their blasters in the air, cheering at Leia's words. She looked upon the crowd with a small on her face.

She turned to face Finn and Poe. "How long until they reach us?"

"The walkers and cannon are slow, but time isn't on our side," Finn said. "We have about .75 hours until that cannon gets within range of the shield door."

"We need to find a way to give us as much time as possible," Leia said. "The First Order needs to cross those salt flats. Let's meet them out there. Waiting for them to reach our trenches will be tipping the scales in their favor."

"I'm on that," Poe stated. "I'll take whatever pilots are left and use those skimspeeders to slow them down."

Leia nodded, approving his plan. Poe walked away from her, gathering all the pilots he could find.

She then addressed Finn. "I want you on the ground in those trenches. You've fought in the First Order's army, you know their tactics better than anyone here. I'm trusting you to call the shots on the frontlines."

"Yes, General Leia," Finn accepted.

"Rose," Leia said, calling the mechanic over. "You've proved yourself well today, but I'm afraid I have to ask more of you."

"Of course General, I wouldn't expect anything less," Rose replied.

"Good. I'm putting you in charge of our supply lines. There aren't enough supplies for everyone to carry a full load into battle. Deliver extra ammo and equipment only when it's needed. You'll be making runs between the base and the base and the trenches. Use the underground tunnels. Is that clear?"

"Yes, General."

Leia smiled warmly. "Excellent. May the Force be with you both." With that, she turned away from Finn and Rose and walked towards the command center.

Rose looked up at Finn, grinning widely.

"What?" he questioned, feeling slightly awkward.

"You stayed," she said. "This has nothing to do with you friend Rey anymore, but you stayed. Why?"

Finn took a deep breath, thinking of the best way to explain his change of heart. "When I first left the First Order, I just wanted to run, make a life for myself far away. I saw their savagery. I thought the First Order was invincible, that any fight against them was hopeless. And then I met Rey."

"Didn't see that part coming," Rose quipped sarcastically. Finn shot her a look.

"Okay, I'm sorry," she fessed up.

"Anyway, Rey was the first person I met who actually cared for me. But she was captured by the First Order. That's the only reason I went to Starkiller Base. To rescue her. Then she and I came face-to-face with Kylo Ren. I barely survived that fight, but when I woke up I found out she had defeated Kylo and gone on to fight Luke."

"And that's when we met, right after you woke up," Rose added. "After the First Order ambushed us."

"Yeah. I wanted to grab the beacon and run away from the Resistance so Rey would find me somewhere safe. I told myself disabling the tracker would be my last mission for the Resistance. And then at Canto Bight, I realized that there was no running. No matter where I was, the First Order would catch up. But now I saw that the First Order was vulnerable. If I wanted to live the life I dreamed of, I needed to fight."

"Well then welcome to the Resistance, soldier," Rose said cheekily, slugging Finn on the shoulder. "May the Force be with you."

At first Finn rolled his eyes, but then his expression become sincere. "You too, Rose."

Resistance troopers in khaki and dark green fatigues ran through the trenches, carrying blaster rifles and cases of ammunition. They exchanged shouts as they set up their defense.

"On me! On me!"

"Move! Move!"

"Gather your weapons!"

Finn walked along the salt flats, observing the vague shapes of the First Order army in the distance. He was still wearing his black officer's pants and tan shirt, but had thrown his brown jacket on over the top. An ammo bandolier was strapped across his chest. Two soldiers followed closely behind him.

Finn glanced back at the troopers. "We're gonna start in the trenches farthest away from the base. If we get overrun, we retreat the trenches right behind us. If we get overrun there, same principle. Just keep fighting 'til you can't, then fall back and do it all over again."

"Yes sir," the two Resistance soldiers said, hopping into their respective trenches. Finn lowered himself into his own trench, noticing how it was made of dark red crystal instead of the pale white of the salt flats.

He looked to either side of himself at the dozens of soldiers in the trench with him. Some visibly showed fear. Others hid it, hoping to keep a strong façade. Others were resigned to their fate, and bowed their heads hopelessly.


	8. Part 8

Leia sat in the command center, observing a large display screen showing an image of the approaching First Order army. Other viewscreens showed views of their trenches and the mounted guns placed alongside them.

The General addressed the group of Resistance officers running the command center. "We need to keep our heavy turrets firing as soon as the walkers get within range. The First Order doesn't know they're in a race against time. They'll keep their walkers out of range of our turrets to minimize the amount of damage they take. They'll try to use ground troops to take out our big guns and allow the walkers to push through."

Poe's voice crackled over the command center radio. "General, all skimspeeders are fueled up and rearmed. We're waiting on your signal."

Leia nodded to a nearby officer. "Deploy the speeders."

Several flaps opened upwards on the shield door. Skim speeders shot out one after another, gliding over the trenches and gun turrets and impacting the salt flats in a burst of red dust.

After hitting the ground, the speeders wobbled as they hovered, due to the craft's weak repulsorlift tech. Each pilot flicked a green toggle in their cockpit, deploying a stake-like mono-ski that stuck into the ground and kicked up a wake of red crystal dust, but kept the speeders much more stable.

Poe, who was piloting the lead skimspeeder, spoke into his headset. "I don't like these rust buckets and I don't like our odds, but the rest of the Resistance is counting on us. Make sure to give 'em hell."

The skimspeeders zipped across the salt flats, leaving behind red trails as they headed right for the looming First Order army.

Leia watched the speeders from a viewscreen in the command center. She felt pride in Poe for taking on this risky mission, but feared for his safety. Over the course of his service in the Resistance, Leia began to see Poe as a surrogate son.

"Have the artillery open fire on the walkers," she ordered. "That'll halt them in their tracks and provide covering fire for the skimspeeders."

Kylo and Hux stood at the viewport of the shuttle, observing the incoming blaster bolts. The blasts left black scars on the walker's armor, but didn't do any serious damage.

"Halt the heavy walkers right here," Kylo ordered. "Have the ground troops and scout walkers destroy their turrets."

"Supreme Leader, we need to press the attack," Hux urged. "We can't allow the Resistance time to escape."

"If we keep advancing those heavy guns will eventually penetrate the armor on the walkers. They have nowhere to escape. Their backs are against the wall. Time is our asset."

"Very well," Hux replied coldly. "At your discretion."

Kylo glared at the General before glancing back at the mine. Deep within, he felt the presence of his mother.

Leia could sense her son, leading the attack against the Resistance with a newfound feeling of power and confidence. Whether he felt any mercy for her or the Resistance, she couldn't say. She was unable to penetrate that deep into his mind.

Kylo let the feeling of his mother's presence fade, focusing on the battle. "Tell the walkers to lay down covering fire for our troops. Then send in the fighters and bombers."

The AT-M6s and AT-ATs unloaded a volley of thick blaster bolts across the salt flats, attempting to weaken the mine's defensive perimeter while allowing the First Order troops to advance.

The ground forces in the First Order formation mobilized, charging across the salt flat. Stormtroopers, heavy assault troopers, flametroopers and snow-troopers briskly marched across no-man's land, red explosions of dust kicking up all around them. Dozens of troopers fell to artillery fire. Behind was an assortment of AT-STs, AT-HSs and AT-HHs.

Flying above the pack of First Order troops was a large formation of TIE fighters and TIE bombers. They quickly overtook the infantry below them, speeding towards the Resistance trenches.

Poe's eyes widened as dozens of TIE fighters and TIE bombers screamed overhead. "Fighters incoming, evasive patterns now!"

The fighters took potshots at the zig-zagging skimspeeders, managing to take a few out. The fighter formation then passed over the speeders, ignoring them and keeping their focus on the Resistance's fixed artillery.

Poe hit the accelerator on his speeder, going so fast that several loose panels began to shake. "C'mon, hold together," he muttered as the formation of Resistance skimspeeders collided with the charging pack of First Order troops.

Poe Dameron weaved through the frenzy, hitting a stomtrooper with the edge of his speeder's wing and sending the soldier skidding across the salty ground. The ace pilot then fired his wing-mounted guns, mowing down rows of First Order troopers.

The rest of Poe's squad followed his lead, gunning down scores of First Order infantry. The quick-moving skimspeeders eventually passed through the bulk of the charging troopers and came to confront a squad of scout walkers.

The scout walkers fired their main guns at the oncoming speeders, destroying several. Poe targeted a nearby AT-ST, zooming closer to get in range. He jerked the stick, banking the skimspeeder side-to-side to avoid the scout walker's blaster fire.

Once in range, he targeted the walker's flimsy legs with his speeder's guns and pulled the trigger. The AT-ST's right leg splintered under the impact of several blaster bolts. The bipedal walker crashed over on its side, fire erupting from its small forward viewport.

Poe let out a victory cry before swinging his speeder around and joining several other Resistance pilots in taking out a heavy hauler. He dispatched a few stormtroopers gathered around the hauler's multitude of legs with a three quick blasts from his speeder's guns.

The formation of TIE fighters and bombers had reached the mine's defensive perimeter and began their attack. Green blaster bolts strafed the pale salt flats, kicking up plumes of red mineral dust.

The Resistance troopers in the trenches fired their blaster rifles into the sky at the incoming fighters, a few even managing to shoot a TIE down. Explosions erupted along the trenches, flinging the bodies of Resistance troopers through the air.

Several of the smaller gun turrets exploded, but the heavy artillery remained impervious to TIE fighter blasts. Several TIE bombers followed up the attack, dropping their ordnance on top of the heavy turrets, causing considerable damage to several of them.

Finn pulled out his comlink, realizing the threat the bombers posed to their defense. "Get all our anti-ship guns focused on those TIE bombers!"

The anti-ship blaster cannons opened fire. Blaster bolts whizzed by the incoming bombers, striking a few. More bombs fell, this time causing destruction in the trenches.

Finn shielded his face as a massive cloud of crimson dust splattered around his trench. He looked up, raising his blaster rifle and firing wildly at the bombers. One of his shots sliced through a bomber's cockpit, scorching the pilot. The ship spun out of control, slamming into the salt flat.

A smaller group of TIE fighters broke off the main group strafing the trenches, heading back towards the skimspeeders.

Poe and four other pilots zipped around the AT-HH, blasting away at its leg. Several First Order crewmen manned mounted guns atop the heavy hauler, spitting fire at the passing speeders.

The skimspeeder next to Poe's was hit by one of the hauler's mounted gunners. It spiraled out of control, the cockpit detaching entirely. Poe banked to the right to avoid the wrecked speeder.

The ace pilot then heard the distinctive roar of a TIE fighter behind him. "Incoming fighters! Evasive patterns, now!"

Poe yanked the stick, sharply breaking to the left to avoid the incoming hail of green blaster bolts. Looking outside his cockpit, he witnessed two other skimspeeders exploded as he maneuvered through the frenzy of walkers and TIE fighter blasts.

"Karrow, you've got three behind you!" Poe called to his wingman.

Karrow was furiously working the joystick, blaster bolts kicking up red dust underneath the wings of his skimspeeder. The three TIE fighters behind him focused their fire, strafing across the body of the aging craft. Karrow's speeder nosedived forward, shattering into hundreds of pieces.

Poe continued to maneuver his piece-of-junk speeder to the best of his ability, navigating the dangers of the battlefield.

The Millennium Falcon pierced through Crait's atmosphere, flying full speed towards the Rebel base. At the controls sat Chewbacca, with a porg fluttering around the dashboard. Rey, having recently been picked up, manned the Falcon's lower gun turret.

"Chewie, head for the battle! That has to be the Resistance," Rey said, speaking into her headset.

The Wookie roared, acknowledging her statement. Suddenly, an alarm began to flash on the Falcon's sensor board.

"TIE fighters! Coming straight for us!" Rey warned. From the turret viewport, she could see a group of fifteen fighters inbound to their position.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," Rey muttered.

The fighters zipped in, firing away at the Falcon. The freighter weaved and spun, evading the blasts.

Rey fired back with the Falcon's turret, hitting a fighter straight through the cockpit. "We're way outnumbered! Get use somewhere less exposed."

Chewie worked the Millennium Falcon's controls, flying towards a red fissure running along the side of a rock formation. The ship turned sideways, slipping through the crevice. Sharp red crystals covered the rock walls on either side of the Falcon.

The horde of fighters followed suit, entering the fissure. Flying down the crystal tunnel, they opened fire on the Falcon. The freighter dodged most of the bolts, but several hit their mark, weakening the ship's shields.

One of the fighters smashed into a crystal jutting from the wall and was cut cleanly in half. A few others came too close as the tunnel grew tighter, causing to collide with each other.

Eleven TIE fighters now pursued the Falcon. The tunnel ended, and the chase entered a massive underground crystal cave. Massive jagged red stalactites hung from the ceiling. A lake covered the cavern floor, stalagmites jutting upwards its surface.

Rey locked onto a TIE fighter and squeezed the triggers on the gunner's chair. The fighter exploded, but several other fighters emerged from the smoke, relentlessly pounding away at the Falcon with their blaster cannons.

The Falcon weaved through the stalactites hanging from the ceiling. Several fighters crashed into the crystal structures in an attempt to keep sight of their target. Others were shot down by the Falcon's guns.

Rey glanced down at the beacon on her wrist. "The Resistance is close! We're almost underneath them. Find a way to get to the surface."

Chewie growled in response, scanning the surrounding cave for a way out. Ahead, he saw light pouring down through the entrance to a vertical tunnel. He threw back a lever, hitting the brakes on the Falcon.

The ship heaved backwards, coming to a vertical position. Chewie then hit the thrusters, launching it into the overhead tunnel. Several fighters didn't react in time and flew past the tunnel, but others managed to keep up their pursuit of the Falcon.

The tunnel grew narrower as it got closer to the surface. The TIE fighters continued to blast at the Millennium Falcon, knocking off its radar dish. Rey let loose with the gun turret, strafing a line of blaster bolts across multiple fighters. The other fighters crashed into the wall or each other as the tunnel became tighter.

Chewie saw the tunnel exit quickly approaching. He tensed up as the Falcon burst through the surface of the salt flats, ending up in the middle of a massive battle between the First Order and Resistance.

Rey spotted a group of TIE fighters swarming the Resistance skimspeeders plowing across the flats. Three TIE fighters came into alignment of her targeting system. She fired, the blaster bolt slicing through all three fighters.

In his speeder, Poe looked up as three of the First Order fighters fell from the sky. With a thunderous roar, the Millennium Falcon swooped over the battlefield, gunning down TIE fighters at all angles.

Kylo's eyes flashed with fury at the sight of his father's old ship. "Blow that piece of junk out of the sky!"

"Fighters, deal with the Millennium Falcon," Hux ordered. The two watched from the command shuttle as the modified freighter continued to shoot down fighter after fighter.

The Falcon banked side to side, twisting and rolling in an effort to avoid the TIE fighters' green blaster bolt. As it was dodging the blasts, Rey fired back, sending multiple fighters careening into the salts flats and leaving red scars along the surface.

"Whoo! Yeah!" Poe yelled, pumping his fist in the air. He refocused his attention on the battlefield in front of him, relieved that he wouldn't have to worry about the fighters, who were busy engaging the Falcon.

He accelerated his craft, skimming across the flats towards a pair of AT-HS scout walkers crawling along on their spider-like legs. "C'ai, form up on me!"

The alien pilot grunted in acknowledgement, steering his speeder next to Poe's. The two Resistance vehicles dodged piles of wreckage strewn across the battlefield, using them as cover from the AT-HSs blasts.

As they got in range, Poe and C'ai began to drive in circles around the scout walkers, kicking up a large screen of red dust. With the walkers' visibility impaired, they couldn't fire on the speeders.

Poe and C'ai maneuvered their skim speeders behind the two AT-HSs, blasting the jointed legs. The walkers, now off balance, keeled over onto the salt flats.

"Two down! Good work C'ai!" Poe cheered.

Finn and the Resistance ground troops tensely waited in the trenches as the approaching legion of First Order infantry came into range.

"Troopers, open fire!" Finn raised his rifle, blasting a stormtrooper directly in the helmet.

Dozens of other First Order troopers fell, cut down by the Resistance troopers' line of fire. Blue and red blaster bolts whizzed through the air. White-armored bodies littered the salt flat. While the First Order had more troops, the Resistance had a better cover position, allowing them to deal a significant amount of damage.

"Keep firing! Keep firing!" Finn shouted, firing his rifle into the approaching mass of First Order soldiers.

A group of stormtroopers and snowtroopers reached the edge of the trench, jumping down inside. They gunned down a few Resistance troopers before the Resistance returned fire. Two stormtroopers and a snowtrooper fell to the trench floor.

Finn saw the group of enemy troops advancing down his trench. He fired a few blasts at them before turning to his men.

"Fall back to the trench behind us," he ordered. The Resistance troopers climbed out of the frontal row of trenches, firing back at the First Order to cover their retreat.

More Stormtroopers hopped down into the trenches, engaging the Resistance soldiers in close-quarters combat. As they cleared the stragglers from the trench, a group of flametroopers came forward.

The flametroopers raised their incinerators, spitting a stream of fire into the open hatches of the heavy turrets.

"The first line of turrets has been cleared," Hux reported, waiting upon the Supreme Leader's next orders.

"Only advance enough to stay out of their effective range. Keep firing on their defenses."

The skimspeeders kept up their fight against the scout walkers, having great success when not being pestered by striking TIE fighters. While the speeders were old and rickety, they were also quick and could avoid enemy fire.

But as every scout walker fell, it seemed like a new one would take its place. Poe grew frustrated as the enemy kept bringing reinforcements, and turned his attention to the heavy walkers.

"All pilots, stop engaging the scout walkers," he commanded. "Keep it tight and focus on their heavy walkers. If we take enough of them out their troops won't have any support. The First Order will have to retreat."

"We hear ya, boss," a pilot radioed in. The twenty remaining skimspeeders formed up next to Poe, thrusters set to the max.

"Twenty incoming light craft," Hux stated.

Kylo knew Leia's fake replacement son had to be piloting one of the oncoming vehicles. The "son" she had cast him aside in favor of. "Focus all firepower on those speeders."

The row of AT-M6s and AT-ATs diverted their fire from the trenches to the approaching Resistance skimspeeders. Three speeders were immediately struck by heavy blaster bolts, causing the rest of the speeders to weave erratically in order to avoid behind hit.

Poe and his squadron of pilots sped towards the heavy walkers, steadily approaching their targets. "Fire on the feet and legs."

The skimspeeders blasted at the walkers' thick legs with their wingtip-mounted guns. The bolts only left tiny scorch marks, unable to pierce the outer armor.

"Come on! Another run!" Poe urged. The formation of skimspeeders swung around, heading back towards the walkers.

Panels opened on the side of the AT-M6s, revealing stromtroopers manning a megablaster cannon. The gunners fired at the speeders, clipping several of the vehicles with a stream of red blaster bolts.

Poe was in a state of intense concentration, sweat dripping down his face as he weaved around the walkers' legs, guns blazing. His attacks only left minimal damage, but he refused to relent.

The Resistance troopers in the trenches kept up their desperate defense. Despite racking up a large First Order body count, every fallen trooper had another take its place. On the Resistance end, every loss mattered.

Finn aimed his blaster rifle, taking out a nearby snowtrooper. Beside him, Resistance soldiers popped their heads up out of the trenches, blasted away and then ducked back down into cover.

A heavy assault trooper ran up the edge of the trench, firing his megablaster at the Resistance infantrymen inside. The soldier next to Finn grabbed the scorching wound on his chest and crumpled against the red trench wall.

Whipping his rifle around, Finn rapidly squeezed the trigger, filling the heavy assault trooper's chestplate with a series of smoking holes.

A ship roared by overhead. Finn looked up, witnessing the Millennium Falcon taking out a pair of TIE fighters.

In the cockpit, Chewbacca roared furiously as First Order fighters fell from the sky. The porg sitting on the dashboard let out a shrill cry, attempting to imitate the Wookie.

In the bottom turret, Rey was surveying the battlefield below. Her eyes landed upon Finn, flanked by a squad of Resistance troopers. While they were putting up a valiant defense, it was clear they would soon be overwhelmed. Something needed to turn the tide in their favor.

"Chewie, I'm going to the last escape pod," Rey said. "The Resistance needs me on the ground."

Down in the trenches, Finn and his Resistance troopers cut down another wave of stormtroopers and snowtroopers with a bout of coordinated blaster fire.

"What are our supply levels?" Finn asked the soldier next to him.

"We're running low on ammo, sir."

"Blast it," Finn muttered. He then peeked his head up from the trench, spotting a group of First Order infantry taking cover behind a series of barricades. The enemy troops periodically stepped out from behind their cover, taking a few shots at the Resistance soldiers.

"We got more troops closing on this position," Finn relayed. Up and down the row of trenches and barricades, the other Resistance troopers were in a similarly tight position.

Suddenly, a junky escape pod fell from the sky, sticking into the ground and creating a splash of red particles. A few First Order troopers stared at the pod, confused about what was happening. The hatch popped open, steam pouring out, followed by the ignition of a blue lightsaber.

Rey leapt forward from the cloud of steam. Three stormtroopers fired on her, but she skillfully deflected the blaster bolts back into each of the troopers' chests. The rest of the troops around her turned their attention from the Resistance soldiers, focusing on her.

Two snowtroopers, a snowtrooper and a heavy assault trooper approached her, rapidly blasting away. Rey blocked the incoming blasts, charging at the snowtroopers. She slashed the first snowtrooper across the chest, then raised her saber behind back, deflecting a blaster bolt back into the second.

The heavy assault trooper rapidly fired his megablaster at the novice warrior. She held the blue saber in front of her body, sending the bolts back to hit a nearby stormtrooper. Rey then lunged forward, slicing the megablaster's barrel in half and then dragging her saber upwards along the trooper's white armor.

With the stormtroopers' attention on Rey, Finn and a handful of soldiers took the opportunity to pop up out of the trench and gun down the enemy troops.

As the enemies surrounding Rey crumpled to the ground, she spotted Finn, staring at her. She ran up to him, jumping down next to him in the trench.

Finn's eyes were wide in amazement. "What was that? How did you—"

"I'll explain later," Rey quipped, standing up and blocking several incoming blaster bolts.

"I've got quite a story too," Finn stated, getting to his feet and firing his blaster out over the salt flat. "We'll catch up if we survive this."

As the speeders came back around to the front of the walker formation, two AT-M6s lowered their beast-like heads, blasters aimed towards the ground.

"Evade!" Poe shouted, banking his craft sharply.

But it was too late. The walkers' back- and head-mounted cannons fired, obliterating the majority of the skimspeeders.

The survivors grouped up, preparing for another pass at the walkers' legs. As Poe approached the enemy, his heartbeat increased. His face was drenched in sweat. Memories of the fallen bomber squadron flashed through his mind, followed by echoes of Leia's words: "Dead heroes, no leaders."

Poe let out a deep sigh. "They're picking us all off. This isn't working. All skimspeeders, pull back!" The pilots turned their vehicles around, zooming towards the Resistance base.

"The speeders are retreating, Supreme Leader," Hux informed Kylo.

Fiery rage filled Kylo's eyes. "Keep firing at them. Once they're destroyed, redirect your fire towards the trenches."

Leia observed the multiple fronts of the battle, concern etched on her face. The command center was filled with commotions as orders were relayed between the troops and their commanders.

"General, Captain Dameron and his pilots are falling back," a Resistance officer reported.

A tiny smile tugged at Leia's lips. "Poe finally learned." She turned to the Lieutenant Connix. "What's the status of the broadcast to our allies?"

"Half of them have received the signal, but no reply. We're still waiting on the others."

Leia rested her forehead against the top of her cane, taking a long breath. "We can only hope this works," she whispered to herself.

The speeders rapidly approached the trenches, plowing into unsuspecting First Order troops from behind. The walkers kept firing, picking off several more before they could reach safety.

Poe's skimspeeder buckled as a blaster bolt clipped its wing. He began to swerve out of control, jerking towards the trench. He threw off his headset and unbuckled his harness before grabbing the blaster rifle strapped to the inside of the cockpit.

The ace pilot stood up, poking through the open canopy, and jumped out of his speeder, which kept skidding along the salty ground. Poe then sprinted towards the nearest trench, sliding into it as his abandoned skimspeeder grinded to a halt.

Finn had watched the speeder crash about fifty meters way from him, and saw Poe slide into the trench.

"Poe! Poe Dameron!" he called, getting the pilot's attention. Poe ran over, stopping next to Finn.

"You okay Poe?" Finn queried.

The ace pilot nodded. "Just a bit scratched up." He then focused on the lightsaber-wielding girl next to Finn.

"I'm Rey," she said, still focused on deflecting blaster bolts with her saber.

"I know," Poe replied. "I'm Poe. Poe Dameron."

"Best pilot in the Resistance," Finn added.

Poe patted the former stormtrooper on the shoulder. "You're too kind, buddy." His head shot up to look at Rey. "But he's not wrong."

Rey merely rolled her eyes, still intently focused on blocking any hostile blasts. The tide of incoming enemies continued as ground troops and scout walkers approached the their currently-occupied trenches.

"What's the plan down in here?" Poe asked Finn.

"Hold out as long as we can. But they keep pushing us back. We've had to abandon half of our trench rows. Not to mention we're low on ammo." Finn pulled out a comlink. "Rose, we need supplies, right now. We're in the fifth trench back."

Rose's voice crackled over the comlink. "I'm on it, just hold tight."

"Yeah, we'll try," Finn said before stowing the device away.

"Finn! Another wave of troops!" Poe shouted, drawing the soldier's attention.

The Resistance troops in the trench raised their weapons, exchanging fire with the approaching First Order infantrymen. Rey continued her routine of deflecting blaster bolts, taking down several enemy troopers in the process.

"I'm here!" shouted a voice to Finn's left. He turned to see Rose, emerging from a tunnel connected to the trench system. She and a few other Resistance personnel carried a hovercart full of ammunition cases.

"Good work, Rose." Finn reached over and grabbed the cases, passing them along to the Resistance soldiers in the trench.

Rose tilted her head, peeking around Finn's body to stare at the elegant female warrior carrying a lightsaber. "Is that Rey?"

Finn turned to her. "Huh? Oh yeah, that's Rey. How'd you know?"

Rose smirked. "Your overly-detailed description of her."

Finn ignored her witty statement, instead focusing down the sights of his blaster rifle. "Just get back to the base and be ready to deliver more ammo when I call you."

Rose and her crew quickly disappeared back into the tunnels, heading towards the mine.

Finn stepped up next to Rey. "We're rearmed and reloaded. With you here we can hold forever."

"Finn, I can't keep this up all day," she snapped, fatigue creeping into her voice.

"She's right, we have to do something drastic and do it fast," Poe remarked.

"Before we do anything we have stop the First Order from taking out the artillery in this trench," Finn said. He activated his comlink. "Rose, we're gonna need some more ammo soon."

Poe looked back at the group of Resistance soldiers lining the trench. "Troopers, fall in! We're taking those bucketheads out."

Rey led the pack, using her lightsaber to shield the other troopers from blaster bolts. Finn and Poe were right behind her, with the rest of the Resistance squad following them.

Up ahead, a collection of First Order troopers jumped into the trench, attempting to eliminate the closest heavy turret. They were about to enter the turret's bottom hatch to clear the structure out when blaster bolts hit them from behind.

The troopers whirled around, spotting the incoming Resistance members. They raised their own blaster rifles and fired back, but Rey was able to deflect most of the bolts. Some of the red lasers passed through her defense, striking a few Resistance troops.

Rey took a running leap towards the First Order troops, whirling her lightsaber to block any incoming blasts. Without breaking her stride, she slashed across the chest of a stormtrooper while delivering a kick to the helmet of one behind her.

As the two troopers fell to the ground, she took up a defensive stance, deflecting blaster bolts. A flametrooper stepped forward, aiming his incinerator towards her. A stream of flame poured out, threatening to consume to consume her and the Resistance soldiers. She held up her hand, holding back the plume of fire with the Force.

Finn raised his rifle, firing a blaster bolt straight into the frozen mass of flame. The bolt traveled through the firestorm, impacting the flametrooper on the other side. The arc of fire being held at bay evaporated.

Still blocking enemy fire, Rey reached for her belt with her left hand, drawing her silver blaster pistol and firing it into a nearby snowtrooper's chest. She held her lightsaber above her head in a one-handed grip, slicing it down across the closest stormtrooper.

Finn, Poe and the Resistance soldiers followed up from the rear, finishing off the rest of the First Order troops attacking the turret.

"The heavy artillery is secure," Finn announced. He turned to Poe. "Got any ideas on what the hell we do now?"

The pilot nodded. "I just might." He ran into the heavy turret and came out carrying a satchel full of munitions.

Rose emerged from one of the underground tunnels, carrying cartfuls of ammunition. She walked over to Finn, personally delivering a blaster power pack.

"Thanks," Finn said, loading it into his weapon.

Poe walked over to Finn and Rose, the satchel in hand. "These power casings are highly explosive."

"That'll never break through the armor of the heavy walkers," Finn told him.

"We might not need to breach their armor," Rose interjected. She pointed towards a prominent crack running through a trench in front of them. "There's a sinkhole underneath that crack. I saw it on one of my runs through the tunnels. If we plant the casings there, we can blow open the sinkhole. It won't take 'em all out but a few walkers could fall through."

"That's the best plan we have right now," Finn said.

Rose smiled. "Good luck. May the Force be with you." She ducked back into the tunnel.

Poe slung the satchel over his shoulder. "Ready?"

Finn took a deep breath. "Yeah."

The Resistance troopers sprung into action, climbing out of the trench and following Rey, Finn and Poe as they pushed up across the salt flat, using the barricades and wrecked vehicles to cover their movement.

Finn and Poe fired their rifles as they ran, taking down several stormtroopers. Rey deflected the enemy blasts while at a full sprint. A snowtrooper popped out from behind a barricade, but Rey reacted before he could, decapitating the trooper. She then switched her saber to a backhand grip, impaling a stormtrooper.

With the white armored soldier still hanging from her blue blade, she aimed her blaster at a flametrooper, dropping her enemy in a few quick shots.

The Resistance forces quickly approached the trench they were headed for. Rey, Poe and Finn slid down into it, the soldiers following suit. Some of the Resistance troopers couldn't jump down to safety in time, and were hit by blaster fire from stomtroopers and scout walkers.

Inside the trench, Poe began to rig the cracked section with explosives. Finn, Rey and the other soldiers engaged the stormtroopers to give him time.

Finn's eyes grew wide as he heard the sound of creaking metal near the edge of the trench. Looking up, he saw a spider-like AT-HS looming over him, its blaster cannon aimed at the bottom of the trench.

Rey saw this, and with lightning-fast speed propelled herself upwards, slicing off the barrel of the scout walker's main gun. The rest of the Resistance troopers in the trench opened fire on the armored vehicle, several blaster bolts slipping through the weakened armor into the cockpit, killing the pilots.

The AT-HS collapsed forward, lying across the top of the trench.

"All done!" Poe announced, having wired up the last casing. He, Rey, Finn and their squad of soldiers climbed out of the trench, retreating back across the salt flat to friendly-occupied territory.

Once back within the intact portion of the defensive perimeter, Finn turned to Poe. "What now?"

"We wait," Poe replied.

Rey was pressed against the metal wall of a gun turret when the comlink on her belt buzzed to life with Chewie's roar.

"What's going on?" Poe queried.

Rey faced the pilot. "The Falcon's shields are almost gone and its guns are at low power." She raised the comlink to her lips. "Fall back, Chewie. You can't do anymore good out there."

"The siege cannon is almost in range. Point-two-five klicks to go," General Hux reported. "Most of the Resistance's artillery has been wiped out."

Kylo's eyes were fixated out the shuttle window at the raging battle. Half of the Resistance's defenses had been destroyed, and walkers had almost reached their trench system.

"Target the Resistance troopers on the ground," he said, his voice low.

The AT-M6s and AT-ATs lowered their heads towards the ground, directing their rain of blaster bolts into the trenches. Resistance troopers vanished in explosions of red dust that shot up into the air.

The First Order's ground troops continued to overrun the Resistance, taking down groups of enemy soldiers with their overwhelming strength.

"How much longer?" Finn shouted to Poe, waiting for the walkers to step over the explosive-rigged crevice.

"Any second now!" the ace pilot replied, his eyes focused on the advancing line of heavy walkers. "Now!" He clicked the detonator in his hands.

The ground underneath an AT-M6 and an AT-AT began to rumble. Cracks spread outwards, resembling a massive spider's web. The salt fractured and gave way, the two massive walkers falling into an endless sinkhole.

The Resistance troopers cheered as the pair of First Order walkers disappeared into the abyss. Their excitement was short lived as the AT-M6s continued their storm of fire, blowing away dozens of Resistance soldiers.

Rose was among those caught in a blast, in the process of delivering ammo. She was flung across the salt flat, alive but wounded. A retreating soldier pulled her body along the ground, dragging her to safety.

The horde of First Order infantry spread out through the defensive trenches, cutting down any Resistance troops in their path.

"We can't keep this up," Finn muttered. He turned to address his men. "All soldiers, fall back to the shield door! Bunker down in the last line of trenches!"

He climbed out of the trench, Poe and the Resistance troopers on his heels. He had already a good distance before he noticed that Rey hadn't fallen back with them. He looked around the battlefield, finally spotting her running furiously towards the line of walkers.

"Rey! Come back!"

With the First Order army focused with the retreating Resistance, Rey had an open path to the heavy walkers. She worked her way through the battlefield, jumping over barricades and dodging any stray blaster bolts that came her way.

Rey reached the broad foot of the closest AT-M6, jumping towards it and clinging onto a series of panels. She used the panels to pull herself up, climbing towards the main body of the walker.

A hatch on the back of the AT-M6 opened downward. A stormtrooper emerged, firing his blaster rifle towards Rey.

The girl swung her body to the side, narrowly avoid the red bolts. She then reached out with the Force and grabbed the stormtrooper, throwing him out of the walker. The trooper hit the salt flat below with a dull thud.

With the threat gone, Rey continued her climb towards the top of the walker.

"Point-zero-five klicks until we're in range," Hux announced.

Kylo observed the battle raging below his shuttle, calculating his next move. "The Resistance has fallen back to the shield door. Don't stop advancing until we're ready to break through into that mine."

Rey pulled herself up onto the top of the walker's back, igniting her lightsaber and running along the metal surface towards the armored head. A hatch opened in front of her and three stormtroopers crawled out. Two held standard blasters, but the third carried a riot baton, which were effective against lightsabers.

Two stormtroopers opened fire. She deflected the blasts back into the chest of one and cut down the other with a vicious swing. The riot trooper stepped towards her, spinning his baton.

Rey exchanged a few strikes with the riot trooper before she locked her weapon against the electrified baton. She kicked out the trooper's knee, then slashed him clean in half.

With no more enemies in her way, Rey ran to the walker's head, jumping off its hunched back and landing on its neck. The armor along the neck was much weaker than the rest of the body, being considerably thinner to allow for more mobility.

She slashed away at the walker's neck, leaving searing marks in her wake. The metal around the neck began to groan, put under strain as its structural integrity was weakened.

With one last slash, the walker's head broke off from the body, falling towards the salt flat below. Rey jumped off the neck, rolling to safety, as the head impacted the ground.

Fatigue had set into her bones, but she wouldn't give up. Not while she had an ounce of strength left in her.

A smirk grew on Hux's face. "The cannon is in range."

"Charge it up," Kylo ordered.

The siege cannon deployed its stabilizing legs, digging them salt flat. The barrel slowly began to spin as the charging process was initiated. Heat gathered deep down in the throat of the massive gun.

Rey heard the sound of the superlaser cannon powering up. She sprinted towards it, running underneath the line of walkers.

She cut open a vent on the cannon's outer hull and jumped inside, climbing towards the walker interior. A blue energy blade pierced through the floor of the midsection deck, cutting a round hole. The metal fell away and Rey jumped up through the smoking hole, lightsaber at the ready. The room was bathed in red tinted light, with steam pouring from various machines.

Black-suited First Order engineers wearing angular helmets drew their blasters and opened fire on the intruder. Rey Force pushed one of the engineers, sending him flying to a row of heavy machinery. She blocked a wave of incoming blaster bolts, sending them back at the black-suited engineers. She cut down the remained engineers with her saber before jumping against a wall and kicking off it, propelling herself onto a catwalk.

Rey sprinted along the walkway, slicing down an engineer that tried to confront her. She reached a ladder, climbing upwards towards a black circular hatch. Upon opening it, she pulled herself out onto the top of the cannon, intent on storming the command bridge seated at the rear.

Hux watched as Rey ran along the top of the drill, heading towards the control center. "There, atop the cannon. Kill the girl."

The shuttle pilots obeyed his orders, maneuvering the ships towards Rey. Kylo remained silent, glaring at Hux.

Rey had almost reached the cannon's bridge when Kylo's black command shuttle swooped in, hovering in front of her.

Kylo stared at Rey from the shuttle's viewport, his eyes filled with indecision. His lip quivered and his hands began to shake. He slightly opened his mouth, but no words came out. As his eyes became glassy, Kylo tightly clenched his jaw.

Hux didn't hesitate. "Fire!"

The shuttle unloaded on Rey. She blocked the first few green blaster bolts, but couldn't keep up forever. One of the bolts impacted the ground next to her, sending her tumbling across the cannon's surface before she slid off the edge.

Kylo watched her fall, his eyes wide with terror. Her body bounced off the cannon's metal hull then slammed into the salty ground.

Pain shot through Rey's body. She stumbled to her feet, grabbing her broken ribs. Her vision spun. Her ears were ringing. Beside her, the lightsaber lay in two jagged halves.

She caught sight of the shield door, orienting herself in that direction and picking up the broken saber. Something inside of her mind kept driving her, placing one foot in front of the other.

Rey suddenly felt a hand grab her bicep and pull her along. "C'mon Rey, stay with me. C'mon, we're almost there."

She looked up, realizing that Finn was dragging her to safety. The sunlight overhead disappeared as they entered a tunnel.


	9. Part 9

The siege cannon's barrel shined brightly, filled with condensed bright orange heat energy. A red beam of light was being emitted from the cannon, crossing the defensive trenches and touching the shield door, indicating where the blast would hit.

Inside the mine, the shield door began to rattle. Leia and her advisors looked around the cavern, showers of rock falling from the ceiling.

Static-filled voices rang out in the command center.

"—Cannon is heating up—"

"—Preparing to fire—"

"—Back behind the doors, get back—"

Leia's eyes closed shut. Fear invaded her mind. Not fear for her own life—fear for the lives of the hundreds of Resistance soldiers that chose to follow her ideals and stand against all odds.

The siege cannon had finished its charging process. With a deep roar, the cannon shot out a concentrated heat blast. The base of the shield door was upon impact, leaving a massive searing hole.

The light from the explosion reflected off of Kylo Ren's dark eyes. "General Hux, advance. No quarter. No prisoners."

Connix observed a display readout in the command center. "Our distress signal's been received at multiple points, but no response. They've heard us, but no one's coming."

Leia bowed her head. "We fought till the end. But the galaxy has lost all its hope. The spark is out."

The command center remained deadly quiet. Resistance members stared at a disheartened Leia, scared of their inevitable fates.

Suddenly, C-3PO shifted his body, spotting a cloaked figure enveloped in shadow approaching them from a mining tunnel. Leia looked up as the figure entered the command center and became illuminated by its light.

"Luke," she breathed. The Jedi Master lowered his hood, revealing a shorter hairstyle and trimmed beard. He sat down on a supply crate, facing his sister.

"I know what you're gonna say," Leia began, "I changed my hair."

Luke nodded in agreement. "It's nice that way." His face grew serious. "Leia, I'm sorry."

"I know. I know you are," she consoled, gripping her brother's gloved hand. "I'm just glad you're here at the end."

"I came to face him, Leia. And I can't save him."

"I held out hope for so long, but I know my son is gone," Leia said, her eyes beginning to water.

Luke squeezed her hand. "No one's ever really gone." He lifted her fingers, dropping Han's pair of golden dice in her palm.

Leia stared at the dice, memories of Han's presence flooding back to her. She looked back up at Luke, who stood up and placed a soft kiss on her forehead before walking out.

C-3PO gazed at the Luke's departing form. "Master Luke," he whispered, catching the Jedi's attention. Luke winked at him before leaving the command center behind.

The Resistance troopers stared in awe as the legendary Luke Skywalker strode through the mine, illuminated by sunlight streaming in through the tear in the shield door.

Rey's eyes landed upon Luke. She limped over to him, clutching his shoulder. "Luke… you came. What changed?"

Luke smiled at his trainee. "A stubborn girl came to my island and held out hope for the legend of Luke Skywalker despite my failings. It just took the words of an old friend for me to realize this."

"Thank you," she whispered, tears of joy welling up in her eyes.

"Don't thank me," Luke said, placing his hand on her shoulder. "This is long overdue."

With that, Luke turned away, headed for the open salt flats. He walked towards the First Order walkers, his body framed by the flaming hole in the shield door.

Kylo Ren saw the single figure emerge from the fiery tear in the heavy bronzium door. "Stop!"

The line of walkers creaked to a halt, stopping a hundred meters short of the Resistance base. The troops walking alongside them also stopped, confused by the presence of one man coming to face them down.

Kylo's face was twisted into a look of hatred. His eyes glinted with unbound rage. "I want every gun we have to fire on that man.

Hux gazed at the Supreme Leader on with bewilderment.

"Do it," Kylo insisted, his eyes never leaving the small figure on the horizon.

The heavy walkers planted their legs into the salt flat, their metallic bodies groaning as they position themselves to unleash all the firepower at their disposal.

Luke raised his chin confidently, the wind blowing through his hair. He held his arms at his sides and stood tall and proud, unflinching in the presence of the First Order army. His eyes burned with determination.

The first AT-M6 opened fire. The blaster point impacted Luke's location, spraying up a plume of red dust. The other walkers quickly followed up with a storm of laserfire, blasting the single man confronting them.

"More!" Kylo screamed, the red glint of the walkers' blasts present mirrored in his eyes.

The AT-M6s increased their fire, recoiling back as they relentless utilized every gun they had at full power. The plume of red crystalline dust had now risen hundreds of feet into the air.

Kylo clenched his first. "More!"

The walkers continued their intensity of firepower, all of them targeting the spot where Luke had stood, which was now completely scarred and clouded by crimson dust.

The entirety of the remaining Resistance forces had gathered in the command center, watching the walkers' blasts pound away at Luke. A mix of concern and awe filled all of their faces.

"That's enough!" Hux shouted, frustrated by the Supreme Leader's lack of emotional control. The guns powered down with a dull, mechanical whine.

Kylo dropped into his seat, breathingly heavily and staring at the floor of cockpit.

Hux glared at him. "Now, if we're ready to get moving, we can finish this."

"Sir?" one of the shuttle pilots queried, looking back at Kylo. The dark warrior rose from his seat, walking over to the shuttle's red viewport.

Luke stepped forward from the cloud of red dust, completely unharmed. His eyes stared straight ahead, boring through the shuttle cockpit and focused on his nephew. He reached up and brushed off his shoulder, a few dust particles spilling to the ground.

Kylo exhaled shakily, astonished as Luke remained standing. "Bring me down to him. Keep the door covered and don't advance until I say."

"Supreme Leader, don't get distracted," Hux said, his voice condescending. "Our goal—"

Kylo lifted his hand, sending Hux flying against the metal wall of the cockpit. The General grunted in pain, tumbling to the metal floor.

The shuttle pilot's eyes widened in terror. "Right away, sir."

The black command shuttle lowered itself to the ground, folding its wings to a vertical position. The bottom ramp opened. Kylo Ren stepped forward on the battle-scarred salt flat.

Poe observed the situation from within the mine using a pair of macrobinoculars. "It's Kylo Ren. Luke's facing him alone."

"Well, we should help him," Finn suggested. "Let's go."

"No, wait. Wait," Poe said, holding Finn back.

Kylo stared at his old Master, filled with an intense, fiery rage. "Did you come back to say you forgive me? To save my soul?" he taunted.

Luke slowly shook his head. "No."

Kylo Ren ditched his cape, throwing it aside. In one swift motion, he drew his cross-guard red saber and ignited its unstable blade.

Luke pulled his out his own lightsaber, igniting its sky-blue blade.

Kylo held his saber outstretched in front of him, pointing the tip towards Luke's heart. The old Jedi stepped his right food back, his lightsaber positioned in front of him in a defensive manner.

"He's doing this for a reason," Poe surmised. "He's stalling so we can escape."

"Escape?" Finn scoffed. "He's one man against an army. We have to help him, we have to fight—"

"No, no. We are the spark that'll light the fire that'll burn the First Order down. Skywalker's doing this so we can survive." Poe turned around to face the rest of the Resistance. "There's gotta be a way out of this mine. Hell, how did he get in here?"

"Sir, it is possible that a natural unmapped opening exists," C-3PO answered. "But this facility is such a maze of endless tunnels that the odds of finding an exit are one-thousand, three-hundred and—"

"Shut up!" Poe shouted, throwing up his hand to silence the droid. "Listen."

"My audio sensors no longer detect anything," C-3PO said.

Poe nodded. "Exactly."

Finn looked around the mine, beginning to catch on. "Where'd the crystal creatures go?"

A small whimpering sound rang out from the end of the mine. The Resistance soldiers looked for its source, spotting a small vulptex heading into a tunnel.

Poe's eyes lit up as a plan began to form in his mind. "Follow me," he said, gesturing for the Resistance to come forward.

All the soldiers looked back at Leia, awaiting her orders.

"What are you looking at me for?" she questioned. "Follow him."

With Leia's confirmation, the troops marched after Poe, following in his wake. She smiled, having watched a hotshot, glory-seeking flyboy evolve into a true leader.

Rey approached Leia. "The beacon is still on the Falcon. I told Chewie to track our location and pick us up in the Falcon."

"Good," Leia said. "Now we just have to find a way to make it out of this mine."

The Millennium Falcon flew over the rugged salt-covered mountains, Chewie trying to spot any signs of the Resistance from the cockpit. R2 was plugged into the ship's computer, trying to use the beacon to zero in on the Resistance's location.

"No. No, no, no!" Poe shouted, throwing his arms up in frustration. They had reached a dead end. The tiny vulptex scurried over the wall of rocks, slipping through a crack.

"Rey…" Finn whispered, looking up at his friend.

She stepped forward, taking a deep breath. "Lifting rocks…"

Kylo and Luke continued to stare each other down, waiting for the other to make the first move. Luke dropped his left hand from the lightsaber, holding it in a one-handed grip, tempting his nephew to attack.

Kylo, saber still pointed at Luke, slowly twisted the unstable blade, heated dust particles falling all around him. He dug the left heel of his boot into the ground, ready to attack.

Luke only returned his glare, unmoving.

Fed up with waiting, Kylo charged forward, switching his lightsaber to a backhand grip. Luke hadn't budged.

Channeling his anger into raw strength, Kylo swung his weapon towards Luke's head. Luke deftly sidestepped the red blade. Hoping to land a hit, Kylo swung again, the lightsaber missing Luke's torso.

Luke and Kylo had switched places across the battlefield, Kylo now standing with the Resistance mine at his back. He panted, staring at his old master and bringing his lightsaber back to a normal grip.

Luke began the standoff again, waiting for Kylo to attack. It didn't take long this time before the dark warrior became frustrated and ran at Luke.

The old Jedi stood unflinching as Kylo raised his saber, ready to strike. Kylo slashed at Luke, who ducked backwards, his torso parallel to the ground. The red blade passed right over Luke's face.

Kylo spun around, swinging at Luke again. Luke twisted his body to avoid the attack, sharply spinning around three times as he retreated back to his original position from the beginning of the duel.

Reddened salt flakes fell from the sky. Kylo unleashed all his rage, done with deliberate standoffs. He charged his opponent and slashed with wild fury. Luke's lightsaber was a blur as he effortlessly moved it to block each of Kylo's attacks.

The dark warrior screamed in anger, slamming his blade down onto Luke's. Sparks flew as the two lightsabers locked together.

Rey's eyes remained closed, her outstretched hand pointed towards the pile of rocks. Slowly, the stones began to shake. The outermost layer of rocks rose slightly, hanging in the air.

Rey tightened her focus, trying to lift the remaining rocks. The ones hanging in the air began to wobble. She felt the stones slipping from her grip and strained herself to keep them afloat.

The effort was too great. The rocks ceased to be suspended in mid-air and dropped to the cavern floor. Rey exhaled deeply, her eyes clouded with disappointment.

The lessons of the Prime Jedi echoed in her mind. Failure wasn't the end, only a step on the road to achievement. The Resistance members in the tunnel were all looking upon her, their last hope, to be their salvation in these dire circumstances.

With a renewed energy, Rey reached out once again, determined to save her friends.

Kylo brought his saber down hard. His old master quickly sidestepped the attack and brought his blue blade up to deflect Kylo's following strikes.

Luke maneuvered around Kylo's last swing and locked his saber with his nephew's, pushing in the same direction of the swing. Kylo was thrown of balance, stumbling across the salt flat.

As soon as Kylo turned to face Luke he was hit full-on by a Force push that sent him skidding across the ground, leaving a red mark behind. Kylo quickly jumped to his feet, already charging towards Luke.

With a wave of his hand, Luke Skywalker kicked up a storm of crimson dust, concealing his location from his former apprentice.

Desperate to kill Luke, Kylo leapt into the dust storm. He spotted Luke out of the corner of his eye and lunged at him, delivering a stabbing thrust with his lightsaber. The red blade only passed through a cloud of dust, Luke nowhere in sight.

Crystal particles stung Kylo's skin as they blew around his face, but he pushed through, determined to slay his old master. He thought he saw Luke behind and whipped his body around, moving his saber along with him. Again, the weapon only sliced through air and dust.

Kylo became paranoid. He glanced left to right, spotting Luke all around him, appearing in one place and then instantly disappearing to another. Each time, Kylo tried to attack the Jedi, but the blade of his weapon only met particles of crimson dust.

Luke extended both of his hands outwards, blowing the dust storm away.

Upon regaining visibility, Kylo looked around, Luke nowhere to be seen. Finally, he turned around, spotting the Jedi Master ten feet behind him.

Enraged at being manipulated so easily, Kylo thrust his hand forward, mustering the strongest Force push he could. Luke merely raised his open palm, negating any effects the attack had.

Kylo closed his eyes, opening his hand downwards. Using the Force he pulled chunks of jagged red crystal up from the ground, positioning them in a floating circle around him.

Thrusting his hand forward, Kylo launched one of the crystal fragments at Luke, who pushed it aside with a slight wave of his hand.

Kylo grimaced in frustration, throwing two crystal chunks at Luke in rapid succession. The Jedi Master only had to twist his body to avoid both fragments.

Finally, Kylo sent all the crystals flying towards Luke with great speed and ferocity. Luke held up his hand, stopping the fragment before launching them back at Kylo. The dark warrior ducked and dodged, narrowly avoiding the oncoming crystals.

Wanting to change up the fight, Kylo charged at Luke, making it a physical battle once again. The Jedi twirled his saber in a single blurring motion, pushing Kylo back with ease. Kylo stepped back, raising his weapon above his head before lunging at Luke.

The Jedi Master jumped backwards, twisting his body through the air while deflecting Kylo's lightsaber strike. He landed with his back facing the shield door, standing in a defensive stance.

Anxious to end the fight, Kylo channeled all of his energy into one deadly attack. He reached towards Luke, attempting to kill the very life Force inside of him. Time seemed to slow as the air between them began to vibrate.

Kylo strained himself, putting all his effort into the attack, while Luke merely stood in place, unflinching. All the Jedi had to do was raised his hand and the vibrating stopped. Kylo bent over, breathing heavily after having his energy drained.

"I failed you, Ben," Luke said, genuine sympathy filling his voice. I'm sorry."

"I'm sure you are!" Kylo spat, shaking with rage. "The Resistance is dead. The war is over. And when I kill you, I will have killed the last Jedi."

"Amazing. Every word of what you just said was wrong," Luke countered. "The Rebellion is reborn today. The war is just beginning. And I will not be the last Jedi."

Rey opened her eyes. In front of her, hundreds of rocks floated in the air, uncovering the exit. Light flooded in, revealing the shape of the Millennium Falcon on the other side.

I'll destroy her, and you, and all of it," Kylo seethed.

Luke deactivated his lightsaber. "No. Strike me down in anger and I'll always be with you. Just like your father."

A moment of tense silence followed. Kylo tightened his grip on the hilt of the crossguard saber, the unstable blade fiercely crackling. Anger welled up inside rim, reaching a breaking point.

Kylo screamed, bounding across the salt flat towards a defenseless Luke. Without slowing down he held his lightsaber back, ready to strike.

Luke stood motionless as Kylo swung his saber. The blade passed right through the Jedi Master. Kylo skidded to a half, leaving behind two stripes of uncovered red dust.

Realizing what had happened, Kylo turned around, his eyes wide. Luke stood, completely unharmed, shifting his body to face Kylo.

The dark warrior, still unable to believe what he seeing, slowly raised his lightsaber, driving it through Luke's chest. The saber didn't leave behind any wounds. It disappeared into Luke's form in a bright light, coming out the other side.

Kylo's eyes, glued on his saber, slowly looked upwards to focus on Luke's face, which stared back at him with a smirk.

Luke, in a state of cross-legged mediation, floated above the cliffside precipice on the Ahch-To island. His hair was long and gray, and his beard untrimmed. His eyes were shut in intense concentration, and his body shook from the vast effort it took to project an invincible form of himself across the Galaxy.

Kylo removed the saber from Luke's chest, lowering it to his side. He was still too shocked to react the situation. He could only stare at his old master in amazement.

"See you around, kid," Luke growled, in a voice of reminiscent of Han's. Slowly, the Jedi's body began to fade, until it completely disappeared from the salt flats of Crait.

Kylo's lips trembled. The wind violently swept hair. He remained in place, his eyes never leaving the spot where Luke once stood.

Finally, he snapped out of his dazed state. He turned around, facing the breached shield door. His fist clenched at his side. "No!"

Luke opened his eyes, falling to the mediation rock below him. He lay sprawled out on it, fatigue overwhelming his body. The setting sun above him cast a strong light on the motionless Jedi Master.

After finally gathering his strength, Luke pulled himself upright, staring out over the cliff. His long gray locks blew softly in the wind. His eyes watered as he gazed at the dual sunset hanging over the ocean. His memory flashed back to Tatooine, when as a young, day-dreaming farmboy, he stared out at the planet's twin suns, longing for something greater.

Luke Skywalker was silhouetted against the two suns, his cape flapping in the wind, when his body faded away to become one with the Force.

Kylo Ren stormed through the flaming hole in the shield door, a group of First Order troopers trailing behind him. They strode through the mine, turning into the command center.

Kylo held up his hand, signaling he was going into the room alone. As he did, General Hux glared at him with pure vitriol and hatred.

Kylo knelt down to the command center floor, having spotted a golden glint. As he scooped up the object, he felt Rey's presence appear before him. Their connection through the Force, still alive even after Snoke's demise. Kylo raised his chin so he could look upon her face.

Rey looked down at Kylo, standing at the top of the Falcon's ramp. The same man she had hope for. That she had tried to save.

Kylo stared back at her, his eyes pleading for forgiveness.

Rey's hand hovered over the button that would close the Falcon's ramp. Her eyes remained fixated on Kylo. Her hand moved towards the switch but hesitated.

Kylo's heart rate sped up as he awaited her response. For her to say something to him, anything.

Rey wanted to help save Ben Solo. That glimmer of hope hadn't yet died. But now was not the time. Her hand hit the button, steam blowing down as the ramp closed shut, cutting off her view of Kylo Ren.

Kylo flicked his eyes downward, observing the pair of golden dice he held in his gloved palm. The dice began to fade, becoming an outline of their former selves before disappearing entirely.

Kylo bowed his head to the floor, trapped in his own mind as stormtroopers continued to search the base around him.

The Millennium Falcon left the atmosphere of Crait, having gone around to the other side of the planet to avoid the fleet of First Order destroyers. What was left of the Resistance, a forty-person group of commanders, officers, soldiers and pilots, was crammed into the Falcon's hold.

All around the hold, people were embracing and conversing with their friends, recounting their stories of the battle and wondering about the future of the Resistance.

Leia sat down next to Rey, who was turning over he pieces of the broken lightsaber in her hands.

"Luke is gone," the girl said. "I felt it. But it wasn't sadness or pain. It was peace and purpose."

Leia nodded. "I felt it, too."

Finn had set Rose on the Falcon's small medical bed. He reached into a storage drawer, running his hands over a series of old Jedi texts before pulling out a blanket. He draped it over Rose's unconscious body.

Rey approached Finn, placing her hand on his bicep. "I'm sorry… she's your friend, isn't she."

Finn sighed, nodding his head. "Yeah, you could say that. Rey… what happened with you?"

"What… what do you mean?" Rey asked, puzzled.

"You left, and you came back… different. In a lot ways."

"Well," Rey started, unsure of what to say, "I… I'm still processing all of it. I don't think I'm ready to talk about it yet." Tears built up in her eyes, slowly dripping down her cheeks.

Finn pulled her into a hug, holding her tightly. "Don't worry. You're with us, where you belong. When you're ready, I'll be here."

Poe, standing next to Leia, looked around the Falcon's hold, examining each Resistance member. He turned to Leia. "How do we build a Rebellion from this?"

Leia smiled, reassuringly placing her hand on Poe's shoulder. "We have everything we need."


End file.
